A 10-year-old boy has been apprehended by Minneapolis police after he was spotted driving a stolen vehicle through a playground filled with children. The juvenile, whose identity remains undisclosed due to his age, was taken into custody last Friday.
The incident occurred on September 20 at Nellie Stone Johnson School in north Minneapolis. Surveillance footage released by the police shows the stolen car being driven on the grass and sidewalk surrounding the playground. The vehicle passed by the playground equipment, where several children were playing, three times. School staff can be seen in the video attempting to move the children out of the vehicle’s path.
The young driver was booked into the Hennepin County Juvenile Detention Center on Thursday on probable cause for second-degree assault. Fortunately, no one was injured during the incident, and no children on the playground were hit by the vehicle.
The boy is not a stranger to law enforcement. According to police records, the 10-year-old has over 30 entries dating back to May 2023. He has previously been arrested twice for auto theft-related crimes. Additionally, he is listed as a suspect in more than a dozen cases, ranging from auto theft to robbery to assault with a dangerous weapon, as well as runaway incidents.
Police Chief Brian O’Hara stated that the boy’s family is cooperating with the police and has requested assistance to prevent their son or anyone else from getting hurt or killed. O’Hara expressed his disbelief that a child of such a young age could be involved in such serious criminal activity without effective intervention.
O’Hara emphasized that prison is not a suitable option for a 10-year-old, but insisted that the adults who can prevent this behavior must act immediately to assist the child and his family. He cited the incident as an example of the “revolving door” of arresting and re-arresting the same juveniles for auto theft and other violent crimes. He stressed that resolving this complex issue requires the participation of every entity involved in intervention.