Norwegian teen steals bus and drives it to Sweden

A 14-year-old Norwegian boy stole a public transport bus from Vestby early Tuesday morning and drove it across the border into Sweden, where he was stopped by Swedish police, Dagbladet reports.

The bus, owned by Connect Bus and operated under Oslo’s public transport authority Ruter, was taken from a garage in Vestby, Follo. Swedish police intercepted the vehicle in Stenungsund, north of Gothenburg, according to Sveriges Radio.

Norwegian police confirmed the theft was reported around 4 a.m. Tracking data showed the bus had crossed into Uddevalla, Sweden. Swedish authorities detained the vehicle and identified the driver as a 14-year-old Norwegian boy.

“This is not standard practice. This is a very serious matter that we will review internally,” said Knut-Martin Løken, a spokesperson for Ruter. The agency is in dialogue with Connect Bus to investigate how the theft occurred.

Øystein Dahl Johansen, another Ruter representative, noted that operating a bus requires significant skill, adding that he had not encountered a similar incident in his 11 years with the company. The boy has not been formally arrested but remains in the custody of Swedish police and child welfare services until Norwegian child protection officials can retrieve him.