When police stopped a BMW towing a caravan in the north of England on Thursday afternoon, they were shocked at what they found in the driver’s seat.

Officers from North Yorkshire police were told a caravan had been stolen from a holiday site near Thirsk and was being towed away by a black BMW.

They had tracked the luxury car, which was using cloned registration plates, travelling south on the A1.

About 45 minutes after the caravan was reported stolen, the vehicle was stopped on the M1, having left the A1 near Garforth.

Officers said they were “staggered” to find an 11-year-old boy sitting in the driver’s seat of the BMW.

When they searched the car, they found “equipment typically used by suspects to carry out thefts” and a selection of vehicle registration plates.

The boy was arrested on suspicion of offences including theft, burglary, going equipped for theft, and motoring offences including dangerous driving.

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He was questioned and then released on conditional police bail to allow police to make more inquiries.

Nobody was injured during the incident and the caravan’s owners have been told their vehicle has been found.

The force said it has seen an increase in caravan thefts in the region recently.

It recommended caravan owners take steps to deter thieves, such as installing CCTV, fitting alarms and tracking devices, and taking good quality photos of their vehicle to aid identification if it’s stolen.

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