At what age did you first drive a vehicle? 14, 15, 16? Earlier than that? Whatever it was, it likely doesn’t match the recent experience of a 5-year-old boy from Utah, who was pulled over on a highway in Utah, USA.
The enterprising lad was behind the wheel of his mother's SUV with the intention of driving to California, the $3 in his pocket apparently destined for the purchase of a Lamborghini worth about... $200,000.
It appears the poor child’s mother had refused to buy him one! This is according to a story posted by Utah state highway patrolmen on their Twitter account.
The police officer who intercepted the child initially thought it was a case of drunk driving, because the vehicle was zigzagging and only travelling at about 50 km/h on the highway, mainly in the passing lane. Needless to say, the patrolman was stunned when, after pulling the vehicle over, he found a young boy behind the wheel.
"How old are you? You’re five years old? Wow, where did you learn to drive a car?" Officer Rick Morgan can be heard asking the driver. He later confided to a local television station that the boy "was sitting on the front edge of the seat so that he could reach the brake pedal to keep the car stopped while I was standing there." The police officer had to help him by placing the gear selector into the Park position.
A pretty remarkable story – and to the relief of everyone involved, no one was hurt in this case.
No decision has been made as to whether the mother will be prosecuted; it’s a possibility, because presumably a five-year-old can’t take control of a vehicle like that without being left unattended.
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