Marseille police stop nine-year-old driving SUV with father on Avenue du Prado

Interception on Avenue du Prado

Patrol officers from the Departmental Motorcycle and Road Safety Brigade (BMSRD) intervened on the afternoon of Friday, 11 September 2026, in the eighth arrondissement of Marseille. The motorcycle officers noticed a two-tonne Audi Q7 bearing Romanian registration plates moving erratically along Avenue du Prado. The sport utility vehicle was swerving unpredictably across traffic lanes and brushing dangerously close to vehicles parked along the roadside. The incident occurred around 17:00, coinciding with dense afternoon commuter traffic along one of the primary transit arteries in the Bouches-du-Rhône prefecture. The patrol approached the moving vehicle with caution to prevent a crash, intending to conduct an immediate roadside inspection. Upon pulling alongside the luxury SUV, the officers observed that the individual seated in the driver's seat was a nine-year-old child.

Conditions inside the vehicle

Upon inspecting the cabin, officers determined that the nine-year-old boy was operating the vehicle without wearing a seatbelt. The child was leaning forward against the steering wheel because his legs could barely reach the accelerator and brake pedals. In the front passenger seat, the boy's 53-year-old father sat holding another younger child unbelted on his lap while keeping one hand on the steering wheel to steer the vehicle. Police officials noted that none of the three occupants in the moving car were secured by safety restraints during the improvised driving lesson. Officers executed a controlled stop to secure the vehicle and protect surrounding motorists. A subsequent search of the car's interior revealed a prohibited switchblade knife concealed inside the passenger door storage pocket.

“We avoided the worst.”

Police custody and formal charges

Following the interception, police officers removed the children from the vehicle and transferred both the nine-year-old boy and his younger sibling into the custody of their mother. The 53-year-old Romanian national was taken to a local police station for initial questioning and was subsequently released. On Wednesday, 16 September 2026, authorities summoned the father to appear before an officer of the judicial police, where he was formally placed in police custody. Prosecutors filed multiple charges against the father, including operating a motor vehicle without a valid driving licence, complicity through aid and assistance in facilitating a traffic infraction, and violating French weapons legislation.

Judicial proceedings and social welfare inquiry

The suspect was brought before the court in Marseille on Thursday, 17 September 2026, for a preliminary judicial hearing. The public prosecutor's office confirmed that the father will face a formal hearing under the prior recognition of guilt procedure (CRPC), commonly known as a guilty plea procedure, scheduled for January 2027. Legal authorities indicated that the rapid intervention by motorcycle officers prevented a severe collision on the heavily congested Avenue du Prado. Alongside the criminal court proceedings, French social services initiated a formal child protection inquiry to review the living conditions and welfare of the minors involved in the household.