Trevor Daniel Jacob, right, filmed himself skydiving from a solo plane in a YouTube promo titled ‘I Crashed My Airplane’ and admitted to being charged with obstructing a federal investigation into the crash . (Screenshots from the video)
A US Olympic pilot, skydiver and former snowboarder has admitted obstructing a federal investigation into his plane crash which he filmed with a selfie stick as he parachuted to the ground, all for viral video gold , before returning to the crash site and destroying the evidence. , authorities said.
Trevor Daniel Jacob, 29, agreed to plead guilty on Wednesday to one count of destroying and concealing with intent to obstruct a federal investigation, officials said in a news release.
The crime carries a maximum statutory sentence of 20 years in federal prison. He is expected to make his first court appearance in the coming weeks.
“Trevor takes full responsibility for his error in judgment,” his attorney, Keri Axel, said in an email to Law&Crime on Saturday. “He hopes to move beyond that and use his status as a world-class action sports athlete, entrepreneur and influencer to be a source of good in society.”
According to his plea agreement, Jacob is an experienced pilot and skydiver who had secured sponsorship from a company that sold various products, including a wallet. Jacob agreed to promote the company’s portfolio in a YouTube video as part of the deal, officials said.
The stunt happened on November 24, 2021, when Jacob, equipped with a parachute, a video camera, a selfie stick and a plane equipped with several video cameras, took off from the airport of Lompoc City on California’s central coast for a solo flight, allegedly destined for Mammoth Lakes, authorities said.
In the 12-plus-minute video, which has garnered over 3.8 million views, there are multiple views from different cameras showing him exiting the plane, which descends and then crashes into the side of the plane. a mountain, while he can be seen parachuting down to the ground and landing in the bushes.
He documents the aftermath, showing a cut on his elbow and saying, “I’m so happy to be alive.”
And then he goes, “Well, where the hell am I going to land a fucking plane. I will die. That’s why I always fly with a parachute.
Authorities said he planned the stunt and jumped about 35 minutes after taking off over Los Padres National Forest.
The plane crashed into dry brush in the Los Padres National Forest, a stretch of mountain range that stretches inland from California’s coast from Ventura to Monterey. No one was hurt.
On the ground, Jacob walked to the location of the wreckage and retrieved the data containing the video recording of his flight and the plane crash, officials said. He reported the crash to the National Transportation Safety Board two days later.
In the weeks following the crash, officials said Jacob told investigators he did not know the location of the wreckage.
On December 10, 2021, authorities said he and a friend traveled to the wreckage site by helicopter.
He secured the wreckage on the helicopter and flew the downed plane to Rancho Sisquoc in Santa Barbara County, where the wreckage was loaded onto a trailer and tied to Jacob’s pickup truck.
He drove the wreckage to Lompoc City airport, offloaded it into a hangar, cut it up, destroyed it and deposited the parts in bins at the airport and elsewhere in an attempt to conceal it. , authorities said.
On December 23, 2021, Jacob uploaded a YouTube video titled “I Crashed My Plane”, which featured a wallet promotion and depicted him parachuting out of the plane and crashing.
Jacob admitted in his plea deal that he intended to make money from the video.
Jacob further admitted to lying to federal investigators when he submitted a plane crash incident report which incorrectly stated that the plane experienced a total loss of power approximately 35 minutes after takeoff.
Jacob also lied to an FAA aviation safety inspector when he said the plane’s engine had shut down and he couldn’t identify any safe landing options, so he jumped. parachute out of the plane.
The FAA revoked Jacob’s pilot license in April 2022.
His Team USA Olympic biography states that he took ninth place in men’s snowboardcross at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. The “Fun Facts” section states that he is also an accomplished skateboarder, surfer, motocross rider, BMX biker, snowmobiler, and “professional madman with MTV’s Nitro Circus”.
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