In a startling case that highlights the dangers of pursuing viral fame at all costs, a 17-year-old YouTuber in Nebraska is facing felony charges for allegedly derailing a freight train in a reckless attempt to create shocking content for his channel.
The Incident: A Train Wreck for Clicks
The incident took place on April 21 at approximately 6:10 p.m. when a BNSF Railway coal train derailed at a crossing in Bennet, Nebraska, about 17 miles southeast of Lincoln. Investigators allege that the male teen, who has not been identified because of his age, tampered with a rail switch, causing the train to derail and collide with an empty coal car on a repair track. As per court documents, a total of five coal cars and two locomotives got derailed but remained upright after the incident.
According to KOLN, a train conductor informed the investigators that he noticed that a switch was misaligned as his train was approaching the crossing. Although the conductor attempted to make an emergency stop, he couldn’t do so before reaching the spot where the missing switch should have been. A padlock was supposed to be attached to the misaligned switch, but the investigators found that it was missing, indicating that it had been tampered with.
The teen denied trespassing in the area and tampering with the switch, but the investigators pointed out that the teen knew where the switch was and how it worked. According to the affidavit, when authorities said they had no idea why the train got derailed, the teen replied, “Obviously, a switch was flipped the wrong way.”
It was later revealed through a surveillance video that there was a lone driver in a 1996 Buick Park Avenue traveling around the area just before the teen was seen walking on the south side of the tracks toward the switch, raising suspicions about his involvement in the incident. Despite his claims that the switch was flipped incorrectly, authorities believe he intentionally misaligned it to create the dramatic video content.
The Charges: Viral Stunt Turns Criminal
According to court documents, the teenager, described as a train enthusiast or “railfan,” is charged with two counts of criminal mischief resulting in damages exceeding $5,000. These are classified as Class IV felonies in Lancaster County court.
According to The New York Times, the derailment caused an estimated $350,000 in damages, including costs to the BNSF Railway and the Omaha Public Power District. Penalties could include a $15,000 fine and up to seven years in prison on each count. A motion has also been filed to move the case from juvenile court to county court.
The Video: Clickbait Gone Wrong
On April 23, 2024, the accused uploaded a five-minute video of the incident on his YouTube channel called Capitol City Rail Productions. The video, which has the title Loaded BNSF Arbor COLLIDES and DERAILS in Bennet, NE! MOST INSANE VIDEO I’VE EVER TAKEN, has already earned more than 627,000 views, as of this writing.
The video is supposedly staged from the point of view of an innocent passerby. “Oh my God! Oh my frickin’ God!” the accused repeatedly gasped in the video as he was filming the loaded railcars come off the rails.
“Are they OK?” he asks after the incident, which fortunately did not cause any injuries to people in and out of the train.
Surprisingly, instead of leaving the scene after the incident, the teen was actually the first one to report the derailment. He even approached an investigator at the scene to show him the footage he recorded, according to Fox Nebraska. You can watch the video below:
Unfortunately, this seemingly deliberate train wreck is not an isolated case but rather part of a troubling trend where content creators engage in increasingly dangerous stunts to attract views. In recent years, several incidents have highlighted the risks associated with such behavior. For instance, a similar prank in Virginia resulted in a YouTuber being shot after a joke went wrong, illustrating that the pursuit of online fame can lead to life-threatening situations.