Minneapolis in shock: 10‑year-old's crime spree raises alarms
A troubling incident occurred at the end of September in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA. Local police detained a 10-year-old who had stolen a car and driven it onto a school playground while children were playing. A video of the incident spread rapidly online. It was revealed that the 10-year-old is well-known to the police.
On September 20, a driver forcefully drove onto the crowded playground at Nellie Stone Johnson School in Minneapolis, dangerously circling near the playing children. This is visible in the video released by local police, which went viral.
According to the BBC, the reckless driver was a 10-year-old driving a stolen car. "Fortunately, no children on the playground were struck by the driver," the officers stated.
American media reports indicate that on Thursday, October 5, the 10-year-old was detained and sent to a juvenile detention centre in Hennepin County. It turns out that this was not the boy's first encounter with the law. Since May 2023, he has "collected" at least 30 entries in police records, and this was his third time in detention.
The 10-year-old's family asked for help
According to cbsnews.com, the 10-year-old is a suspect in several cases, from "auto theft to robbery to assault with a dangerous weapon." As early as August, the boy attempted to steal a car.
It is unfathomable that a 10-year-old boy has been involved in this level of criminal activity without effective intervention — emphasized local police chief Brian O'Hara. — Prison is not an acceptable option for a 10-year-old boy. But the adults who can stop this behavior going forward must act now to help this child and his family — he noted.
The boy's parent is cooperating with the authorities. According to the officers, it's the family who "has asked for help to keep their son or anyone else from being injured or killed."
