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Those trying their hand at the Bear Claw are supposed to plunk money in the arcade game and use a mechanical claw to pluck a toy from below. Then they use a joystick to maneuver their prize over a chute and drop it down.

But Kael Ireland didn’t play by the rules. He crawled his way up and into a promised land of toys.

Kael, 3, slipped out of his 24-year-old mother’s apartment about 5:30 p.m. Monday, while she was in the bathroom, Lincoln Police Officer Katie Flood said in an email.

He wandered across the street to Madsen’s Bowling & Billiards on Dudley Street, walked into the building unnoticed, crawled up the chute of the claw machine game and started, well, playing.

His mother, Ashley Ireland, said she always locks the apartment door. While Kael’s been able to unlock it for awhile, he’s never taken off before.

“He’s very energetic and social -- no fear at all,” Ireland said in a Facebook message.

Kael’s favorite toys right now: “He loves bears, but dinosaurs are his favorite right now ... and puppies,” his mom said.