A 12-year-old boy attempting to drive across Australia made it 800 miles before he was stopped by police and reunited with his parents.
It was not clear why the boy took off on his trip from Kendall, New South Wales, to Perth in Western Australia — a total of 2,485 miles — but he made it to Broken Hill, New South Wales, on Saturday before authorities stopped him, CNN reported.
The Australian Associated Press stated Highway Patrol officers pulled him over about 11 a.m. after they spotted the car's bumper dragging along the ground.
"Officers from Broken Hill Highway Patrol stopped a motor vehicle on the Barrier Highway due to defects which made the vehicle hazardous," a patrol representative told AAP. "Checks revealed the driver to be a 12-year-old boy traveling from Kendall NSW on his way to Perth."
If the boy completed the trip from Kendall to Perth, it would have taken him through some of the harshest deserts in Australia, including a possible six days across the Nullarbor Plain, according to The Independent.
"While this is a sealed road, it travels through remote areas and requires thorough preparation," said a statement about the area on Australia.com.
The boy probably avoided suspicion about his age because he appeared older, standing about 6 feet tall, noted police detective inspector Kim Fehon, The Associated Press reported.
The boy got gas at one service station in Cobar but left without paying, the AP said.
"When I saw him, he looked like a nice person who was maybe 19 or 20," service station manager Vamshi Reddy said on Monday, wrote The AP. "When police told me he was 12 … I was shocked."
Many on social media were rooting for the 12-year-old.
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