Nine-year-old Steals Car, Cites Arcade Games

A young kid nabs an auto and goes for a joyride. How did he learn to drive? One guess.

Police in Japan apprehended a nine-year old boy this week after he drove off in the family car to visit his grandmother, according to an incident report published in the Mainichi Daily News. It seems the impressionable lad perhaps may have spent a little too much unsupervised time at the local arcade.

Early Monday morning, a citizen called police when they noticed a car traveling down the road without anyone visibly behind the wheel. Police responded to the call and soon discovered the vehicle parked in the lot of a nearby convenience story with the young boy sitting in the driver’s seat. Apparently, the kiddo stole his folks’ car and set off to visit his grandma who lived nearby. He didn’t make it, due to getting lost. Well, then there’s the whole getting caught by the police thing.

“It’s my first time driving, but I learned from watching dad and playing at the video arcade,” the nine-year-old told police. His parents were advised to a closer watch on their car and the kid in the future.

The report doesn’t specify what games the boy was playing at the arcade, but it’s entirely conceivable getting behind a virtual racing wheel or two instilled a sense of driving knowledge in the youth. After a few rounds of Mario Kart, I’m feeling ready to burn some rubber myself.