SEREMBAN: The parents of a 10-year-old boy who crashed the family car into a van will be charged with negligence.
This is the second case in recent times where a child has been caught driving.
Seremban police chief Asst Comm Mohamad Hatta Che Din said the parents, who are in their 40s, would be investigated under Section 31(1) of the Child Act 2001, which states that it is an offence for anyone responsible for the care of a child to abandon, neglect or expose said child to danger so as to cause him/her physical or emotional injury.
He said preliminary police investigations revealed that the parents were not at home when the boy took the car for a spin.
“The father was unwell and taken to hospital for treatment by the boy’s mother.
“We have already called the mother in for questioning and will speak to the father later,” he said, adding that the couple had allegedly been negligent for leaving the car key at home.
The boy crashed the car into a parked van while negotiating a bend in Taman Arowana Impian at around 9.30pm on Tuesday.
The impact resulted in the van moving forward and slamming into another car.
The boy’s nine-year-old neighbour was with him when the accident happened. Both escaped injury in the mishap.
ACP Mohamad Hatta said the boy will be investigated under Sections 39(1) and 111 of the Road Transport Act 1987 and Rule 10 of the Traffic Rules 1959.
On Aug 7, a 12-year-old boy who drove a car with two other children in the vehicle at a residential area in Puchong, Selangor, was charged at the Magistrate’s Court with underage driving.
The boy claimed trial in closed-door proceedings to a charge of driving a car on the road on July 29.
