Boy, 11, drives 200 miles to live with stranger he met on Snapchat
Boy took brother's car and drove across South Carolina before getting lost and seeking help from police officer
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.A young schoolboy drove almost 200 miles across the US state of South Carolina to go and live with a stranger he met on Snapchat.
The eleven-year-old Simpsonville boy had taken his brother’s car late on Sunday evening and driven it across the state to Charleston to meet an unknown male, local police said.
Officer Christopher Braun was in his police car shortly after midnight the following morning when he saw a motorist pull up to where he was parked on Rutledge Avenue.
“The driver was an eleven-year-old boy and the sole occupant in the vehicle,” said the Charleston Police Department in a statement.
“He told Officer Braun he had just driven three hours from Simpsonville and he was lost,” read the police statement.
The boy told the officer he was going to live with a man he had met on Snapchat, but had become lost.
He was using his father’s Insignia tablet but was unable to go to the man’s house after it dropped the GPS signal and he lost the address.
Mr Braun contacted the 11-year-old’s father, just as he was lodging a missing person’s report with the Simpsonville Police Department.
The man, and his other son, drove to Charleston to pick up the eleven-year-old and the vehicle.
The father’s tablet has been kept as evidence and is awaiting analysis.
Charleston police chief Luther T. Reynolds told CNN affiliate WCIV the incident served as a reminder to discuss social media safety with children.
“I would love tonight, right now, anybody who’s watching this, who is a parent of a child, especially an 11-year-old, to sit down with your 11-year-old, right now, right this moment and have a conversation about what you’re doing on social media, the dangers, the benefits and things that as a parent we need to talk about every day,” he said.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments