A 30-year-old Youtuber influencer, Trevor Daniel Jacob, was sentenced to six months in prison for obstructing the investigation on Monday, Nov. 4, Fox News reported. Jacob destroyed the debris from the plane crash on November 24, 2021. 

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Crashing the Plane Purposely

For the sake of getting millions of views, Jacob staged a plane crash in California, where you can see him video-recording himself parachuting. He did not get any injuries as he landed safely. However, the crash created damage.

The video Jacob posted titled “I Crashed My Airplane.” It showed that the small plane had engine failure over the mountainous Los Padres National Forest in Santa Barbara County. As planned, he already wore a parachute as he jumped out of the plane with a selfie stick camera in his hand.

The video recorded the moments when he jumped off the plane, and the plane plunged. The pilot-Youtuber also mounted cameras mounted on the wing and tail of the plane to document everything.   

After landing successfully, Jacob went to the crash site to recover video from the cameras mounted on the plane, the Justice Department said.

Plea Agreement

In the plea agreement, it said Jacob had a sponsorship deal to promote a company’s product in a video. The Youtuber said he never planned to complete the flight.

The Justice Department said Jacob informed the federal investigators about the crash incident. Authorities told him he would be held responsible for preserving the wreckage. He also agreed to disclose its location. However, he lied and told the authorities he did not know the location.

The plea revealed that Jacob and a friend had flown to the site in a helicopter on December 10, 2021, to gather the wreckage. They transported the debris to another location and moved the parts with a trailer attached to his pickup truck. 

Authorities found out the plane was chopped, and the parts were thrown away in trash bins.

Who is Trevor Daniel Jacob?

Trevor Daniel Jacob is an experienced pilot and skydiver, snowboard cross competitor, extreme sports enthusiast, YouTuber, and now a former pilot. His pilot license was revoked by the Federal Aviation Administration in 2022.

In 2014, he was a representative of the United States in a snowboarding competition.