A YouTube star is facing the consequences after he survived a plane crash — which he apparently orchestrated for views!
Over two years ago in November 2021, Trevor Jacob flew his single-engine aircraft out of the Lompoc City Airport in California — but didn’t have any plans to safely return it. In a lengthy statement released by the United States Attorney’s Office back in May, prosecutors claimed he headed for Mammoth Lakes, where he “planned to eject from his aircraft during the flight and video himself parachuting to the ground and his airplane as it descended and crashed.”
WTF.
According to them, the 29-year-old planned the disastrous event after receiving a sponsorship deal from a company that sold various products, and he wanted to use the stunt as a way to drive up views.
Related: Michael B. Jordan Wrecks Ferrari In Crash With PARKED Vehicle!
He had set up cameras inside the aircraft prior to taking off to record the crash, and in the since-deleted video, titled, I Crashed My Plane, he can be heard saying:
“Holy s**t I’m over the mountains and I have an engine out!”
He then ejected from the plane, and parachuted down before thanking God and the universe for “watching over” him. Yeah. The whole thing was meant to seem like a shocking accident he miraculously survived. Prosecutors say it was a dangerous way stunt orchestrated for advertising bucks.
Wow…
Besides potentially endangering others, the other big problem is he didn’t just lie to viewers, he lied to the government, too!
Two days after the crash, he reported it to the National Transportation Safety Board, where he claimed that he lost engine power and had nowhere to safely land. He also said that he didn’t know where the wreckage was, according to the Department of Justice. However, two weeks after that, he and a buddy flew to the crash site to collect the wreckage and return it to the airport — and got rid of some of the evidence at the same time:
“Jacob drove the wreckage to Lompoc City Airport and unloaded it in a hangar. He then cut up and destroyed the airplane wreckage and, over the course of a few days, deposited the detached parts of the wrecked airplane into trash bins at the airport and elsewhere.”
Diligent, but he was far from in the clear…
After that, he received an Emergency Order of Revocation letter, which was obtained by KTTV on Monday, criticizing how he handled the situation:
“You demonstrated a lack of care, judgment, and responsibility by choosing to jump out of an aircraft solely so you could record the footage of the crash. During this flight, you opened the left side pilot door before you claimed the engine had failed.”
Oof… The agency also claimed “there were multiple areas within gliding range in which you could have made a safe landing,” and pointed out that he was already wearing a parachute prior to when he said the engine failed.
He was charged with obstructing a federal investigation and faced up to 20 years in prison, but pleaded guilty in June to a destruction and concealment charge. His attorney said in a statement the month prior:
“Trevor is taking full responsibility for his mistake in judgment; he hopes to move past it and to use his status as a world-class action sports athlete, entrepreneur, and influencer to be a source for good in society.”
He’s now been sentenced to six months in prison after having his pilot’s license revoked last year.
Wow. We can’t believe someone would go to this sort of extreme for VIEWS! It’s wild… He should consider himself lucky with six months instead of 20 years!!
Thoughts, Perezcious readers? Let us know down in the comments!
[Images via Trevor Jacob/YouTube]
