Four children aged 10 to 14 drove an SUV for more than 600 miles before being stopped by police.
The young joyriders packed fishing rods and left a note before setting off from Rockhampton in Queensland, Australia, on Saturday in a Nissan Patrol.
The car belongs to one of their parents.
When the children were stopped near Grafton, New South Wales, on Sunday night, they locked the car’s doors and refused to get out, police said.
Officers ended up smashing the windows.
Acting police inspector Darren Williams said the group consisted of a 10-year-old girl, two 13-year-old boys and a 14-year-old boy, who may have shared driving duties.
He explained: “It’s a long way – in excess of 1000km – from Rockhampton down to Grafton.
“I couldn’t imagine one person actually driving all that way in two days.”
The children are accused of not paying for fuel at two filling stations along the route.
Williams said there was a short police pursuit in Glen Innes, New South Wales, while one of the 13-year-olds was thought to be driving. But Highway Patrol officers abandoned the chase “due to the age of the driver and the road conditions”.
The 14-year-old boy reportedly lives in Grafton, which is thought to have been the kids’ destination.
Williams said they would be charged but officers were waiting for their parents to arrive before questioning the children.
