CHINA (SCMP) – A 12-year-old boy in China stole his father’s car and took his younger sister on a 200-kilometre joyride because they were bored, Chinese media has reported.
The boy from Huzhou in Zhejiang province, eastern China, got his younger sister to steal the key to their father’s SUV while their parents were at work on Monday and left in the car around 10am.
The children’s father returned home at 12 noon the same day, discovered the car and children missing, and called the police, The Paper reported.
The SUV was later found passing along the highway in neighbouring Jiangsu province, 200 kilometres away, at a speed of 120 kilometres per hour.
The children’s father returned home at noon the same day, discovered the car and children missing, and called the police, The Paper reported.
The SUV was later found passing along the highway in neighbouring Jiangsu province, 200km away, at a speed of 120km per hour.
A news video posted on video-sharing platform Zhongbao, showed surveillance footage of the SUV wobbling while making an awkward right-hand turn, causing the vehicle behind to narrowly avoid colliding with it.
When police caught up with the pair the boy said after driving for a while he began to feel scared and exited the freeway. He then stopped the car at a car park next to a school before the police arrived.
“When were you born?” A police officer is heard asking the boy in the video news report.
“In the year 2009,” the boy answered.
The officer continued, “Did you steal the key, or was it given to you by your father?”
“My sister took it,” the boy replied.
The boy told police that he had observed his father while driving and had played a driving simulation game which inspired him to take the car.
The father was shocked when he learnt the driver of his missing car was his son and that his daughter was seated in the front passenger seat.
The incident was the subject of widespread discussion on mainland social media about children and safety.
One Weibo user said, “120km per hour by a 12-year-old boy? Crazy! The parents could send him to fly a plane.” Another said, “It was too dangerous. I couldn’t dare imagine if something unexpected happened.”
