To a 13-year-old boy, it probably looked like a pretty hot set of wheels.

But now, the young teenager from Dillon, S.C. faces charges after he allegedly did some patrolling of his own in a stolen police car.

Dillon Police Sgt. Jason Turner tells the Morning News of Florence that officers didn’t even know the car was missing until residents reported seeing the boy driving it Sunday. The boy had done the same thing the previous Sunday, but no one noticed.

The boy had watched someone enter a security code on a police department door, memorized it and used it to get into the building to take the keys to the vehicle. The boy, whose name hasn’t been released because of his age, is interested in law enforcement, Turner said.

He remained in custody Wednesday at the Department of Juvenile Justice. He has been charged with larceny and second-degree burglary.

His mother was arrested Tuesday and charged with contributing to the delinquency of a minor. Patricia Gillespie told police she didn’t report her son’s escapade because she didn’t see anything wrong with his patrolling.

— Here’s a followup to a Mid-Daily Item we reported back in May.

Remember the guy from Valparaiso, Ind., who was arrested for climbing to the roof of a gas station to sing a song protesting high gasoline prices?

He now says he will plead guilty to a trespassing charge.

Jay Weinberg, 29, is scheduled to appear in a Porter County courtroom Thursday to enter his guilty plea. He expects to be sentenced to six months probation.

On May 5, Weinberg carried a guitar and a megaphone to the roof of the Family Express station in Valparaiso, where gas was selling that day for $3.78 per gallon.

He sang “Price Gouge’n” for about 15 minutes to the cheers of commuters before police arrested him.

Weinberg says he’s not done with his protests of high gas prices. And he’s selling his song online. If you interested, the Website is www.gasolinesong.com.