A five-year-old boy has been detained by police after he was found pedalling his toy tractor towards a petrol station late at night.

When subjected to a routine traffic check by concerned officers in the town of Ingolstadt, Germany, the child simply explained: "Petrol station. Oil run out!"

The "young farmer" was eventually returned home to his mother, North Upper Bavaria Police wrote in a "story to smile about" posted to their Facebook page.

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He was picked up by officers making a routine traffic patrol at around 9pm, who made sure to give both driver and vehicle a thorough examination.

The runaway was then returned home to his mother, who had still not noticed her son had gone missing. He apparently clambered out of a window while her back was turned.

One comment on the police's Facebook page read: "And? Was the oil successfully topped up?" The citizen went on to express concern that the engine may be frozen up.

The police replied: "All good! Running like it's freshly oiled".

Another wrote "You are awesome!", to which the police replied: "We'll pass that on! Thanks a lot!"

A third member of the public posted: "Good work. Great friends and helpers. Good that nothing happened to the little man."

In Philadelphia last year, an eight-month-old received a severe dressing down by traffic police after running a red light in her hot pink pedal car.