EAST PALESTINE, Ohio – A craving for a McDonald’s cheeseburger apparently prompted an eight-year-old Ohio boy to take his four-year-old sister for a ride in his dad’s van, which he learned to drive on the internet.
East Palestine police Officer Jacob Koehler told WJW-TV in Cleveland the father went to bed Sunday and the mother fell asleep on the couch with the kids.
READ MORE: McDonald’s restaurant evacuated after smoke bomb attack
Koehler says witnesses saw the boy driving and called police in the city, about 90 miles (145 kilometres) southeast of Cleveland. He says the boy drove about a mile to the restaurant, through intersections and over railroad tracks, without mishap.
Witnesses say the boy appeared to obey traffic laws.
READ MORE: Not so Happy Meals: McDonald’s faces class action lawsuit in Quebec
Koehler says the boy told him he learned to drive by watching YouTube videos.
No charges have been filed.