Jakarta –
A YouTuber who intentionally crashes an airplane in order to gain views will plead guilty in court to obstruction of justice by clearing the crash site, US attorneys say.
Trevor Jacob, 29, uploaded a video of the plane crashing to YouTube in December 2021, implying it was an accident. This video has been watched up to 2.9 million times to date.
In the plea, he said the video was recorded as part of an agreement with the sponsors.
He faces more than 20 years in prison.
The 29-year-old pilot and parachutist has agreed to plead guilty to one count of felony tampering and intentional concealment to obstruct a federal investigation, the US Department of Justice said Thursday (11/05).
In November 2021, Jacob left the California airport in Santa Barbara City on a solo, camera-equipped flight. Apart from the camera, Jacob also brought a parachute and a selfie stick.
He “had no intention of reaching the destination, but planned to get out of control in mid-air, and film himself parachuting and the plane crashing,” the US Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California said.
Trevor JacobJacob exits the plane before it crashes.
The plane crashed in the Los Padres National Forest, 35 minutes after takeoff. He hiked to the location and retrieved the footage. Some viewers on his YouTube channel have cast doubt on the crash, given that Jacob had used a parachute, and had made no attempt to land his plane safely.
Jacob later reported the crash to the National Transportation Safety Board, and said he was responsible for storing the remains of the plane that crashed.
In the memorandum of defense, Jacob later claimed that he did not know the location of the crash.
But the truth is he already knew. He then returned to the crash site by helicopter and secured and removed the remains of the plane. Jacob then destroyed it, the statement said.
Jacob plans to appear in court in the next few weeks.
His pilot license was revoked last year.
Jacob’s lawyers have not yet responded to the BBC’s request for comment.
(it/it)
2023-05-12 11:40:31
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