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9 year old steals cars: Playstation to blame
chaossoldier
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
Get this: a 9-year-old kid steals his neighbor's car, gets spotted by police on the interstate, guns it, and a 90 mph chase ensues. Kid tries to take an exit ramp, engine blows, car hits a curb, coasts into a tree, and he's captured. It's the third vehicle the 4th grader's stolen. And guess what? Mom believes "PlayStation" taught him to drive. Oy!
And that's just the beginning! The real story is that the boy most recently evaded airport security, managing to hop a Southwest Airlines flight from Seattle-Tacoma International Airport to San Antonio, Texas. He was eventually apprehended while attempting to catch another flight to Dallas, where he had hoped to reunite with his grandfather.
The short end version.
The actual news story
A 9-year-old boy with a history of stealing cars and running away sneaked onto a plane bound for Texas, getting caught after flubbing an airport connection, officials said.
Semaj Booker apparently obtained a Southwest Airlines boarding card and made it through airport security Monday, hopping two separate flights but landing in San Antonio, Texas — short of his Dallas destination, police said.
The fourth-grader remained Wednesday in juvenile custody in San Antonio. He had been trying to get to his grandfather in Dallas, where he used to live.
The airline said in a statement said a young man approached the ticket counter at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport requesting a boarding pass and said his mother was already in the boarding area.
"The young man's information matched a paid, ticketless reservation for the flight. Based on the information he gave us, he was issued a boarding pass," the airline said. He was not listed as a child because he told the agent he was 12 years old, Southwest said.
Airline employees in San Antonio stopped Semaj from boarding another flight when he couldn't explain why he didn't have a boarding pass for that flight, said David Hebert, spokesman for the San Antonio International Airport.
The boy was unhappy after his family moved to Lakewood, outside Tacoma. His odyssey began Sunday when he stole a car that was left running outside a neighbor's house, only to be spotted by police near the interchange of Interstate 5 and State Route 512, authorities said.
Police pursued Semaj at speeds up to 90 mph until he took an exit and the engine blew, after which the car went over a curb and coasted into a tree. He refused to come out of the car, so officers broke a window to unlock a door and immediately recognized him as a frequent runaway and car thief, Guttu said.
He was released to his mother, but he ran away again, authorities said.
The Pierce County, Wash., prosecutor filed three charges against Booker on Wednesday in juvenile court, all related to the vehicle theft. The charges were sent to San Antonio, but Guttu wasn't sure what the next step would be.
Last month, the boy crashed a stolen car before being caught by police in Tacoma, and more recently he was caught in Seattle in a stolen car that had run out of gas, said his mother, Sakinah Booker. She believes he learned to drive from playing video games on a PlayStation.
Booker said she had hoped to soon move her four sons back to Dallas, but Semaj grew tired of waiting.
Semaj was "incredibly motivated to get to Texas," Guttu said. "He doesn't want to live in Washington state."
The picture is what makes it golden
chaossoldier on
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I wonder what mom blames for the kid's stowing away on that jet to Texas. Flight Simulator?
We need to start requiring licenses for pregnancy or force abortions.
Shooting a rifle =/= Shooting a Counterstrike Rifle.
Some parents =/= Smart.
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Maybe he learned how to drive from his Playstation, but what's important here is that he didn't learn to not to break the law from his fucking mom.
Holy crap you're right.
Evaded two state police forces and made fools of airport security agents.
At 9 Years old.
Hell, playstation isn't to blame. This kid needs to stop watching 24
How the hell did he even reach the pedals?
Had his teddy bear accomplice operate them.
The kid was ranked 3rd worst person in the world on Countdown last night. Why only 3rd? 'Cause he's 9 years old.
Sadly, he didn't name the kid's parents #1 like he should've. :P
fixed
Hey, I think I'll sig this.
This one's mine.
They sooooo need to make a videogame about this kid.
He could become a real life MacGyver!
Seriously, how do you get ahold of that info? Either he read over someone's shoulder, stole a credit card and bought a ticket, or hacked into a computer somewhere. Of the three, the credit card one is the most likely (and he probably took it from mom's purse).
But you'd think the story would mention that.
Dude definetly is a Frank Abagnale in the making. Don't ever give him a checking account.
The best part of the story is how she told the authorities that if he broke the law again, she didn't want him back.
Because, you know, it's not like you're his mother or anything, right? Like, it's not your fault that this happened, right? I'm sure all the other kids that play video games out there don't steal multiple cars and sneak onto airline flights because, oh, they just don't feel like it today, right?
I'M A TWITTER SHITTER
No, if there was a history of abuse, he wouldn't have done this, because he knows the helluva beating he would have gotten when he got home.
This is the exact opposite problem. We're in chocolate motherfucking milk territory here.
I'M A TWITTER SHITTER
If you don't chase and stop anyone that runs, then everyone would run.