A slippery 11-year-old boy is terrorising a luxury Durban suburb, entering homes through burglar bars too narrow for adults, the Daily News reported on Wednesday.
Once inside, his light footfall is barely heard as he robs his unsuspecting victims, leaving via the same route.
Not only can the 1,2m, 30kg boy get into homes unnoticed, but he has also managed to wriggle his way out of police holding cells and escaped, through the ceiling, from places of safety.
The Daily News said the boy is linked to about 30 house breakings, particularly in the Reservoir Hills area, over a period of two years.
The little dodger has been arrested at least 10 times by police, but escaped time and again by slipping through the bars of police holding cells.
He has also escaped from a reform school in Mpumalanga, and recently gave the officials at the Valleyview Place of Safety in Sydenham the slip.
An official at Valleyview said an investigation is under way into his escape from the facility during the Easter weekend.
The official said the child, who claims to be an orphan, is being used by older members of a gang to break into homes. — Sapa