YouTuber says he crashed his jet on purpose to get views (video)

May 13, 2023


 

According to the US Justice Department, a 29-year-old YouTuber who intentionally crashed a plane has agreed to plead guilty to a federal offense after he destroyed the jet's wreckage.



Trevor Jacob In a video he produced to advertise a wallet, he acknowledged to federal officials that he intended to crash his jet. In order to prevent federal investigators from looking into the crash scene, he later gathered the aircraft's debris and removed it, according to a news release from the US Attorney's Office for the Central District of California.


In order to hinder a federal investigation, Jacob, a pilot and skydiver, consented to plead guilty to one count of destruction and concealment, according to the press statement.



On November 24, 2021, the flight took place. Jacob stated in the plea agreement that he never planned to land the aircraft after it took off from Lompoc City Airport in Santa Barbara County.




As opposed to that, he "planned to eject from his aircraft during the flight and video himself parachuting to the ground and the airplane as it descended and crashed," the statement reads.



Authorities claimed Jacob had installed numerous cameras throughout the aircraft and included a parachute, video camera, and selfie stick.


“Approximately 35 minutes after taking off, while flying above the Los Padres National Forest near Santa Maria, Jacob ejected from the airplane and videoed himself parachuting to the ground,” the statement added.

According to the press statement, he parachuted to the ground, recorded the crash, then hiked to the debris and took the video data with him.



Two days after the collision, the YouTuber informed the National Transportation Safety Board of it and offered to provide them access to the scene. However, he falsely told police that he did not know the location of the accident site. About two weeks later, he flew there with a companion, loaded up the plane debris, and then destroyed it, according to reports.

About a month after the incident, he posted a video on YouTube titled "I Crashed My Airplane," which featured Jacob jumping out of the aircraft and the crash itself.



On YouTube, his followers were skeptical of the stunt. Several comments noted that Jacob was already wearing a parachute, that he didn't try to glide the plane to a safe landing spot, and that he took his camera and selfie stick with him when he got out of the plane.



According to the press release, "Jacob admitted in his plea agreement that he intended to make money through the video."




The news announcement stated that he also acknowledged to lying to federal authorities after submitting an event report for an aviation accident and making the false allegation that the plane completely lost power around 30 minutes after departure.



“Jacob also lied to (a Federal Aviation Administration) aviation safety inspector when he said the airplane’s engine had quit and, because he could not identify any safe landing options, he had parachuted out of the plane,” it added.



Following the stunt, the FAA revoked Jacob’s pilot license last year, according to the release. He will appear in court in the coming weeks.

The case continues.  


Watch the video below

  


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