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Boy, 5, takes family car on four-mile joyride

7:30am Friday 19th March 2010 in


A five-year-old boy took his family's automatic 4x4 on a four-mile "joyride" in West Sussex before crashing it into a wall.

Traffic officers described the incident as "remarkable" and said that little Thomas Chatfield and other drivers were lucky to have escaped without serious injury.

Several motorists dialled 999 after spotting a Mitsubishi Shogun being driven erratically and slowly by a small boy on roads east of Chichester just after 7am.

At around the same time, the Thomas's father reported to police that his son had driven off in the family vehicle moments beforehand.

A short while later the 4x4 hit a wall in Pook Lane, Lavant, and Sussex Police believe Thomas had travelled just over four miles from his home before crashing.

Thomas was taken to St Richard's Hospital in Chichester as a precaution but appears to have been uninjured and was reunited with his family.

A driver who had been briefly following the Shogun took care of Thomas while police and an ambulance were called, a force spokesman said.

Police later received reports of three other vehicles, two of which were parked, being damaged by the Shogun but nobody was injured.

The 4x4 was first seen by drivers travelling along a short stretch of the A27 between Tangmere and the junction with the A285, then up to Halnaker and then across country to Lavant.

The police spokesman said: "Police believe that the car travelled just over four miles from the address.

"Several witnesses have spoken of it being driven at a slow speed, but erratically."

Officers have met with the family to explain what happened but no further action will be taken, the spokesman added.

Pc Mark Ryan, of Sussex Police's road policing unit based at Chichester, said: "This was a remarkable incident and both the boy and other road users clearly had a lucky escape, as a serious collision could have happened at any stage."

Did you see the incident? Call the newsdesk on 01273 544538.

Comments(18)

miss_lad_pink says...
3:25pm Thu 18 Mar 10

WTF! How would he have reached the brake pedal!! and the Accelarator!!

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kumquat says...
3:39pm Thu 18 Mar 10

Hope they breathalysed him!

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uslot says...
3:45pm Thu 18 Mar 10

Joy riders are starting you these days.

seriously though,im glad hes ok.

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BiggerH says...
4:10pm Thu 18 Mar 10

4x4 being driven slowly and erratically in the morning?

My immediate thought would be that it was a mother on the daily school-run

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Andre Spooner says...
4:22pm Thu 18 Mar 10

This is incredible! Some children attempted to steal my Mighty Horse just the other week (I do believe it was that pair of scamps who have been rooting through my bins). Fortunately, after some close brushes with danger, I have fitted my dear Mighty Horse with a high volume alarm system, and as they attempted to ride off into the sunset astride my fine Horse, the shrieks and wails of the alarm alerted Spooner, and I chased after them, apprehending them fast. What is the world coming to!

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Old Ladys Gin says...
4:28pm Thu 18 Mar 10

At least I waited until I was 12!

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leedsnowfan says...
5:07pm Thu 18 Mar 10

Wow! Respect!!!! Now theres a great playground story!!!

sec word: boys-gone

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Acheron says...
10:21pm Thu 18 Mar 10

Being the bore here! No need to press a pedal with an automatic, unless it's a half decent incline most automatics will move forward slowly once put in drive (or reverse if it's going backwards!)

Security word (no joke here) very-slow)

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geno says...
12:06am Fri 19 Mar 10

Respect!

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ICantThinkOfAName says...
8:32am Fri 19 Mar 10

He should get a twelve year driving ban!

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Nyberg says...
9:35am Fri 19 Mar 10

I don't see why almost everyone thinks this is funny. He could have killed someone, and would you all still be laughing then, and saying 'respect'?
Those parked cars he hit could have easily been a person.
And there's that word 'joyride' in the headline again. Ask any of the people who had their cars damaged whether they are full of joy.
I doubt it.

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strange fish says...
10:27am Fri 19 Mar 10

The boy is obviously a ner do well.
Bring back borstal.Send the kid there to teach him right from wrong.
Send the careless parents to jail for allowing it to happen.
Sieze and sell the 4x4 to help fund the prison system.
And their house

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shrek's uglier brother says...
11:16am Fri 19 Mar 10

And I expect it's all a huge joke to his neanderthal parents who left the keys where he could get them & probably showed him how to start the thing up. Still, if nothing else the owners insurance will probably refuse to pay up, so they can all have a good laugh with their little darling when the civil court cases start coming in.

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Made In Sussex says...
1:35pm Fri 19 Mar 10

I reckon this boy did no worse than the average 4x4 driver, he probably has the same mental age as most Cayenne or X5 driving tw@ts!

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corruptive says...
4:16pm Fri 19 Mar 10

Surely this story is CRYING OUT for an Argus photo opportunity, with the little lad sitting giggling behind the wheel whilst his excellent parents stand grinning?

Security-word: snap-pics

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Spx says...
7:39pm Fri 19 Mar 10

So what

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Mr Lahey says...
11:07pm Fri 19 Mar 10

Nyberg wrote:
I don't see why almost everyone thinks this is funny. He could have killed someone, and would you all still be laughing then, and saying 'respect'? Those parked cars he hit could have easily been a person. And there's that word 'joyride' in the headline again. Ask any of the people who had their cars damaged whether they are full of joy. I doubt it.
Good lad!

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jon s says...
12:00am Sat 20 Mar 10

Made In Sussex wrote:
I reckon this boy did no worse than the average 4x4 driver, he probably has the same mental age as most Cayenne or X5 driving tw@ts!
When you grow up and maybe settle down with kids,you'll think differently.In the meantime,tense your thighs,waknre!

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