The 12-year-old from Michigan took the Construction Genie GTH-636 Telehandler — equipped with a forklift and weighing up to 35,000 pounds — from outside Forsythe Middle School using a key found in the cab.

Police were first called to the school around 6.45pm and later found the boy driving down a street without the vehicle’s headlights on.

With emergency lights on and sirens blaring, multiple officers pursued the vehicle at 15–20mph until the child stopped driving and was taken into custody.

“This was a very dangerous situation that could’ve easily ended with serious injuries,” police said in a statement. “The incident remains an active and ongoing criminal investigation.”