Klang Selatan police chief Ramli Kasa said they have also identified the young driver and two other children who were passengers in the Proton Saga, Bernama reported.

Footage of the incident, which happened at about 10am, has gone viral.

Ramli said the 11-year-old child and one of the passengers, aged seven, are siblings and United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) cardholders, while the third child is their Malaysian cousin.

“An initial investigation found that the car had been driven by the mother of the two siblings from the Bandar Sultan Suleiman area at North Klang Port to her sister’s house in Telok Gong, Klang. The mother had left the children for a moment to go to the toilet.

“When the woman left to go to the toilet, the 11-year-old child took the car keys and drove the younger sibling and their cousin to a shop,” he said in a statement.

He said the child drove for 2km before losing control of the vehicle when approaching the shop area, causing it to skid into a drain by the roadside.

No one was injured, and the front part of the car was slightly damaged.

Police have recorded statements from the parents of the child driver and are investigating the case under Section 43(1) of the Road Transport Act 1987 for reckless driving, Section 39(1) of the same law for driving without a licence (underage), as well as the Child Act 2001 to identify any elements of child neglect.