A photo of a 3-year old Canadian toddler immediately went viral across the Internet after Halifax police posted it on its Twitter and Facebook accounts. The image showed Declan Tramley's priceless reaction after learning he was getting a ticket for illegal parking. The local constable, Shawn Currie, together with the boy's father, arranged to stage the joke last weekend as the unsuspecting toddler enjoyed a ride on his toy motorbike around the Halifax Pier in Nova Scotia, The Inquisitr reported. When the little red motorcycle was parked on the wrong spot, Constable Currie - who is a member of the police community response team - approached the erring resident and promptly issued a fake ticket. The boy, who looked distressed, sat in his bike, clearly dismayed with the unfortunate turn of events.
The photograph was initially posted by the boy's parents online, but the Halifax Regional Police took interest in the story and shared it in its social media accounts as part of an effort to bolster the police department's image. Constable Currie pointed out that they welcome different stories - such as Declan's "brush" with the law - those that show the nice side of policing, according to Today. The police warned the public to "remember, no motorcycle parking in the circle by the ferry terminal. This ruthless biker was caught yesterday!" in its now popular Twitter post. The story was then "retweeted" and shared numerous times on Facebook and was picked up by several news organizations (see video below). While many were amused, some netizens were fooled in thinking that the boy was actually issued a real ticket, prompting the police to explain about the ruse.
The public's reaction has amazed Declan's parents. They further gave their reassurance that their son thoroughly enjoyed the experience. According to his mother, "he loves his ticket (now). He tried to go to bed with it," in an interview with ABC News.
