Utah 5-year-old caught driving family SUV to California to buy Lamborghini, parents avoid charges
OGDEN, UTAH: No criminal charges have been brought against the parents of a five-year-old boy who drove their SUV and tried to reach California to buy a Lamborghini,
Weber County Attorney Chris Allred said there was no evidence of neglect from the parents’ side. Adrian Zamarripa drove a couple of miles before being stopped by Utah Highway Patrol on Interstate 15 on Monday, May 4.
The young boy made headlines after he took the keys of his parents’ SUV and tried to drive to California to buy the luxury car with just $3 in his wallet.
He told trooper who stopped him that "he left home after an argument with mom, in which she told him she would not buy him a Lamborghini. He decided he'd take the car and go to California to buy one himself."
“One of our Troopers in Weber Co. initiated a traffic stop on what he thought was an impaired driver. Turns out it was this young man, age 5, somehow made his way up onto the freeway in his parents' car. Made it from 17th and Lincoln in Ogden down to the 25th St off-ramp SB I-15,” Utah Highway Patrol also said about the incident in one of its tweets.
Adrian’s parents said he was punished for his actions. While the boy is unlikely to buy his dream car in the near future, he did get to ride in one after his story made headlines. Lamborghini owner Jeremy Neves from Orem gave Adrian a ride after reading about his story. “This car’s fast! My Lamborghini’s fast,” Adrian said, while enjoying the ride.
However, this prompted a backlash on social media with many saying that giving the young boy a ride was just rewarding his misdeeds. “This is exactly what's wrong with kids today. There are no repercussions for their actions. Parents need to start parenting. There is no way this kid should have been rewarded for STEALING HIS MOTHERS CAR AT 5 YEARS OLD! What is wrong with people?” one user commented.
“If I did this my parents would have whooped my butt for putting other's lives in danger. How is what he did okay in any sense to be rewarded like this??” said another one.
“ABSOLUTELY RIDICULOUS!! This is what's wrong with this generation. Parents are not parenting. If this was my child whoever the stranger was that offered a ride in a Lamborghini I would have told them absolutely not!” a third person added.
While Neves, who offered the boy a ride, said he doesn't want to encourage children to drive their parents’ car or “do anything else that’s illegal’, he added that in Adrian he saw some potential if guided in the right direction. “I’m absolutely inspired by the principles that he displayed of success, of knowing what he wants, going after it,” Neves added.
Adrian’s family also showed their gratitude towards Neves, saying they have been facing a lot of criticism after the incident. “We went through a lot of these past two days. Yesterday it was … we didn’t believe it. Today was even harder,” Adrian’s sister, Sidney Estrada, said.
“I'm happy that he got to experience this, despite everything that's happening,” she added.