2
2
YouTuber Trevor Jacob has agreed to plead guilty to obstructing a federal investigation into a 2021 plane crash in California that the Federal Aviation Administration has claimed the pilot purposely caused, court documents show.
The charge -- destruction and concealment with the intent to obstruct a federal investigation -- carries up to a 20-year prison sentence. A plea agreement was filed on Wednesday, court records show. Jacob is expected to make his initial court appearance in a few weeks.
The crash occurred in November 2021 while Jacob flew over Los Padres National Forest. Jacob posted a 12-minute video of the crash to his YouTube channel that has received nearly 3 million views, according to the video's YouTube page.
Prosecutors claim that Jacob never planned on reaching his destination and that the plan was always to crash the plane, and that he lied to federal investigators about not knowing the crash location. Prosecutors claim he flew in a helicopter and hoisted the wreckage out of the remote area, then dismantled the aircraft with the goal of obstructing an investigation.
Jacob was also accused of lying to the FAA, which revoked his pilot's license last year over the crash.