Man charged after video shows three-year-old steering a ute through suburb

WA Police charged a 30-year-old Alkimos resident with reckless driving after he posted a video of a three-year-old child unrestrained on his lap steering a Toyota Hilux through a residential area. In the footage the driver can be heard joking and telling the child to watch the road while the vehicle swerved before stopping at a house. Police traced the upload to an address in Morley, arrested the man on Saturday, and scheduled his appearance before Joondalup Magistrates Court on October 2.

Road Policing Operations Division Superintendent Michael Dalla-Costa called the incident “deeply concerning,” stressing that children depend on adults for safety and that a moving vehicle is not a toy. Government minister Matthew Swinbourn and Kidsafe WA chief Scott Phillips condemned the behaviour, saying it must be denounced in the strongest terms.