12-year-old leads Calif. cops on wild car chase

A 12-year-old boy led police on a wild car chase that ended in a fiery wreck in Ocean County, Calif., early Wednesday morning.

The chase began after sheriff's deputies spotted a vehicle driving erratically without its lights around 1:15 a.m. local time, CBS affiliate KCBS in Los Angeles reports.

Officials say they suspected a drunk driver, so they tried to pull the vehicle over.

The car didn't stop, so a 15-minute chase ensued. The pursuit ended only when the boy slammed into a tree, setting the vehicle on fire.

While the boy got out of the vehicle before it burst into flames, "he's very, very lucky he didn't die," a sheriff's spokesman told KCBS.

Officials say the boy was later returned to his parents. There are no reports on whether charges will be filed.

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Boys will be boys.