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Child sweethearts tried to elope to Africa

Two German children, aged five and six, were stopped by police from eloping to Africa on New Year's Day to get married.

The childhood sweethearts "were determined to tie the knot under the African sun after seeing a nature documentary together", said a police spokesman in Hanover.

The pair, identified only as Mika and Anna-Lena, hatched the plan for the destination wedding as the children's families celebrated New Year's Eve together.

The following morning, as their parents slept, the two, accompanied by the would-be bride's seven-year-old sister, packed their bags with swimming costumes and sunglasses and set off for the airport.

As the first dawn of 2009 broke, they left their house in the suburbs of Hanover and walked two-thirds of a mile up the road to a tram stop, where they caught a tram to the central station.

But their plan fell apart as they waited for a train to the airport. A guard, concerned to see the three young children waiting on their own, called police.

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