Father locks his toddler son in the boot of his car before driving off because 'the child is too naughty'
- Man is spotted stuffing a little boy into the boot of a car on a busy road in Beijing
- Witness suspected him to be a human trafficker, prompting police investigation
- The man is found out to be the father of the child, who is two and a half years old
- He claimed his son had been naughty and had tried to grab the steering wheel
A father has been caught on camera putting his toddler son in the boot of his car before driving off on a busy road in Beijing.
The man told the police he wanted to punish his son who is two and a half years old, because he had been naughty while sitting in the car.
The boy had, at one point, tried to grab the steering wheel, claimed the parent. It is understood the child had not been put in a car seat.
The man was spotted stuffing a child into the boot of a car before driving off last Wednesday on a busy road in Beijing. Police found out he was the father of the boy and was punishing him
The shocking scene was captured last Wednesday in the Daxing district of the Chinese capital by a passing motorist from another car.
The 11-second clip was later posted onto China's Twitter-like platform Weibo by the eyewitness, who wondered if the driver could have been a human trafficker.
Police launched an investigation after noticing the video.
According to a report by Beijing TV Station, the eyewitness told the police that several cars were waiting for the green light when the man suddenly came out of his vehicle, bringing the child.
The father, known by his surname Zhu, claimed he was taking his son out by himself and the boy had been naughty and throwing a tantrum in the car, so he wanted to teach him a lesson
Apart from the child, a woman was allegedly sitting on the back row of the man's car when he stuffed the boy into the car boot.
The man then returned to the car before driving off, the eyewitness said.
Upon investigation, police discovered that the man and the child in the video were father and son, said the report.
The father, known by his surname Zhu, was about to go to the police station to explain the situation when officers found him in a residential complex in southern Beijing.
The still from a programme aired by Beijing TV Station shows a neighbour talking to the father and the son after officers given oral education to the man for his inappropriate behaviour
Mr Zhu told police officers he was taking his son out by himself that day and the child was throwing a tantrum in the car. Therefore he wanted to teach him a lesson.
'There was no other way (than putting him in the boot),' said Mr Zhu, adding he only drove for a few minutes before letting his son out.
Officers gave oral education to Mr Zhu and suggested he should buy a car seat for his son.
Mr Zhu expressed regret for his inappropriate behaviour.
