Famous YouTube star Trevor Jacob spoke with “Good Morning America” prior to going to prison to serve six months for a stunt gone terribly wrong.
The 30-year-old deliberately crashed his airplane in Los Padres National Forest as part of a stunt in Nov. 2021. The influencer and former Olympian proceeded to hide the evidence following the crash, and later pled guilty to one count of destruction and concealment with the intent to obstruct a federal investigation, according to the United States Attorney’s Office of the Central District of California. Jacob told ABC’s Kayna Whitworth Friday on “Good Morning America” (GMA) he “had no idea” he was breaking the law when he jumped out of the plane, then discovered he had committed five felonies by doing so.
YouTuber Trevor Jacob, who intentionally crashed a plane as part of a stunt, speaks to @kaynawhitworth ahead of his prison sentence later this month. pic.twitter.com/Vpzj8DtWiX
— Good Morning America (@GMA) January 5, 2024
“When I jumped out of the plane, I jumped and I’m like, ‘You just made the biggest mistake of your life,” he told Whitworth. The U.S. Attorney’s Office said several cameras had been installed in the plane before it took off.
Jacob spoke out about the series of events that transpired before he entered the prison.
“I made sure that there was no fuel in the plane. Made absolutely sure that there was nobody in that vicinity,” he said on “GMA.”
The famous YouTuber posted the video of the stunt and titled it, “I Crashed My Airplane” on Dec. 23, 2021, the attorney’s office said. The video and images have since been deleted from the platform.
“Jacob is an experienced pilot, skydiver and former Olympic athlete who had secured a sponsorship from a company that sold various products, including a wallet,” the U.S. Attorney’s Office said. “Pursuant to the sponsorship deal, Jacob agreed to promote the company’s wallet in a YouTube video that he would post.”
Jacob said he ultimately knew he had made a mistake but proceeded to post the video because he “was just grateful to be alive” and figured he “may as well put this online.”
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The influencer initially claimed he had no idea where the plane’s wreckage was, then flew a helicopter to the region, picked up the remainder of the plane and took the debris to Ranch Sisquoc, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Jacob unloaded the plane’s wreckage in a hangar at Lompoc City Airport and then destroyed and discarded it into trash bins, the attorney’s office said.
The Federal Aviation Administration revoked Jacob’s pilot license in April 2022, but he has reportedly since gotten it back.
Jacob assumed “full responsibility” for his actions. (RELATED: This Dare-Devil Stunt By Tom Cruise Will Make Your Heart Skip A Beat)
He shared some advice to his young fanbase.
“Let’s learn from this mistake. Let’s not get in this disgusting feedback loop of dopamine and adrenaline and views and likes. And I’m happy to be looked at as the idiot to show kids, ‘Hey, don’t do this type of stuff'” he said.