10-Year-Old Boy Lives the Dream, Takes Bobcat Construction Vehicle on Joyride Through Neighborhood

A 10-year-old boy allegedly stole a Bobcat construction vehicle, taking it on a joyride that caused extensive damage in Pittsburgh’s Brookline neighborhood.

Authorities said that some properties and parked cars along Fordham Avenue were damaged by the rogue Bobcat, local news station WTAE reported. A fence and a stop sign were also knocked down, according to KDKA.

The unidentified boy took the Bobcat from a nearby construction site over three blocks away, according to Mt. Lebanon Police.

Doorbell camera footage showed the vehicle heading up a hill and turning onto Fordham Avenue after it went down Castlegate Avenue. The 10-year-old was able to ride the Bobcat for a few blocks along Fordham.

"As soon as I heard the crash and I heard beeping, I was like, 'I know it's my car,'" Taylor Shea, whose vehicle was side-swiped by the heavy machinery, told WTAE. “I just knew it. I didn't know it'd be a Bobcat, though."

“My car is really scraped up on the side, took the mirror off my car, but it's definitely not as bad as the other cars over there.”

Another neighbor said that the estimated repairs for their car totaled over $15,000, while one resident, Lucy Sullivan, was shocked to find out that a 10-year-old was behind the wheel.

"I couldn't make out a face, but I did take a mental note that the person driving it did seem a little bit short," Sullivan said. "They were wearing a hard hat with a headlamp, so it was quite bright — and you couldn't really see his face."

Police were able to stop the child and brought him to his family about an hour after his joyride, according to KDKA. 

"I'm glad nobody was hurt and I'm glad that it doesn't look like he did too much damage. I feel bad for the people whose cars got hit though," Edward Monk, a resident, told the station.