A man in Brazil turned up disguised as his mother to pass a driving test on her behalf after she failed three times.
Maria Schiave, 60, grew desperate after her series of failures, so her devoted son Heitor Márcio stepped in with a plan, local media reported.
The 43-year-old donned a floral blouse, earrings and a stuffed bra before turning up at the driving centre in the small Brazilian Amazon town of Novo Mutum Paraná.
But driving test examiner Aline Mendonça, 38, and her colleagues weren’t fooled by the getup, which included a full face of makeup and painted nails.
She told the Guardian: “It was a guy with a long outfit, heavily made-up. It did not look like a woman.”
“I couldn’t believe it,” she added. “It was surreal.”
Ms Mendonça told the paper she calmly asked the imposter for “her” ID and let him take the driving test, meanwhile telling a colleague to call the police.
When officers arrived, “Dona Maria’s” true identity was revealed.
Schiave, a mechanic from Porto Velho, was arrested for fraudulent misrepresentation and attempting to deceive a government body, Brazilian media reported.
“He said he was doing the driving test for his mother – and his mother did not know,” the arresting officer said.
The G1 news site, which first reported the story, said the 43-year-old has since been released on bail.
Police reportedly say he will likely face a fine.
Ms Mendonça said it was unlikely Heitor Márcio would have secured a licence for his mother, even if his ploy had worked.
She told the Guardian that judging by the quality of the fake Maria’s driving “she would have failed just the same”.
