Trevor Jacob, who admitted that he crashed the plane "to get online views," parachutes down from it in the video "I Crashed My Airplane", which has been viewed over 3 million times.

In a plea agreement, Olympic snowboarder Trevor Jacob and YouTuber Trevor Jacob have agreed to plead guilty on a felony obstruction charge. Jacob admitted that he staged an airplane crash to "gain online views" then lied to the authorities about what really happened.

Jacob, 29 years old, first gained attention when he uploaded a video in December 2021 titled "I Crashed My Airplane". In the video, Jacob is seen flying a one-engine plane with cameras inside and outside towards Mammoth Lakes. The propeller stops spinning and he declares that the "engine is out".

Jacob opens the side of the plane, jumps out, and then grabs a selfie stick. He films his descent to the ground as well as that of the plane. Jacob then opens his parachute as the plane crashes into mountains below.

"I suppose I should probably document the events that are taking place." "I'm so glad to be alive," said he after landing. "I'm kind of taking it all in. What the hell am i going to do with a plane? I'm gonna die. "That's why I freakin' always fly with a parachute."

The man then appears to wander around aimlessly, "scared" and lost, until he finds a road, and a Good Samaritan driving a car.

After the video was posted online, it immediately became the subject of skepticism. Many pointed out his parachute, the fact that the door to the plane was unlocked when he jumped, and the multiple camera angles. The FAA launched an investigation in April 2022 and found that Jacob intentionally crashed the aircraft. They then revoked his pilot's license.

The Department of Justice released a press statement on Thursday saying that Jacob had agreed to plead to a felony charge for "obstructing an investigation by intentionally destroying the wreckage of a plane he deliberately crashed in Santa Barbara County, to gain online viewers." In the agreement, Jacob will plead guilty to a single count of destruction and concealment in order to obstruct an investigation by the federal government, which carries up to 20 years of prison time.

Jacob agreed, as part of the plea agreement to promote a product via a YouTube video. He had secured sponsorship from a wallet manufacturer. He admitted he "intented to make money from the video."

In the statement, he says that he did not intend to arrive at his destination once a flight was taken. He "instead intended to eject his aircraft" to film what happened next. According to the agreement, he also claimed that he recovered video footage from wreckage, and had initially agreed to work with the National Transportation Safety Board after reporting the accident.

Instead of giving the NTSB coordinates, Jacob "lied to investigators" that he didn't know the location of the wreckage. Jacob found the wreckage on his own, while flying over the area with a friend in a helicopter. He used straps to secure the wreckage. The helicopter then lifted the wreckage to a nearby airfield before it was "cut up and shredded" and scattered in various trash bins.

Jacob admitted in the press release that he also "lied to federal authorities when he filed an aircraft accident report which falsely stated that the aircraft suffered a complete loss of power 35 minutes after takeoff." He also admitted lying to the FAA that his plane's engine failed and that he parachuted out because he could not find a place to land safely.

He will appear in court "in a few weeks."

Jacob told the New York Times that he was "happy to say" he did not crash his plane intentionally for YouTube views.

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Title: YouTuber Admits to Intentionally Crashing Plane After Initially Claiming Engine Failure, Says DoJ
Sourced From: www.toofab.com/2023/05/12/trevor-daniel-jacob-intentionally-crashed-plane/
Published Date: Fri, 12 May 2023 22:05:13 +0000

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