Some things have a limit, but it seems that in the virtual world these boundaries are getting blurred. The U.S. Department of Justice announced that a YouTuber was found guilty of obstructing a federal investigation by destroying the wreckage of a plane he deliberately shot down for viewership and sponsorship money.YouTuber sentenced to 20 years in prison
Trevor Jacob, 29, posted the video of the plane crash on YouTube in December 2021, implying that it was an accident. The video has been viewed more than 3 million times to date. Jacob said he shot the video as part of a product sponsorship deal. And now the US Department of Justice is preparing to sentence him to up to 20 years in prison. Jacob admitted in his deal that the plane was shot down for a sponsorship.Before taking off, Jacob outfitted the plane with video cameras and himself with a parachute, video camera and selfie stick. Throwing himself out of the plane about 35 minutes into the flight, Jacob recorded the plane crashing into a dry bush area in the national forest. Jacob then went to the crash site to recover his cameras and recordings.
Jacob’s fictional accident did not end there. He waited two days to report the incident to the authorities; The YouTuber, who incorrectly described the incident as an accident in the report, also said that he did not know where the wreckage was. Later, authorities told him that he was responsible for the wreckage. The statement said that Jacob already knew where the wreckage was and that he returned by helicopter, secured and removed the wreckage and then destroyed it. Jacob is expected to appear for his first hearing in the coming weeks. Meanwhile, the video released on December 23, 2021 is still on the air and has been viewed 3.6 million times.
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