A teenager has been charged with two felony counts after he derailed a train in Nebraska this week and then filmed the “insane” footage to post on YouTube.
A 17-year-old boy, who is not being identified because of his age, posted a five-minute video of the derailment, which occurred in Bennett on April 21, calling it “the craziest video I’ve ever filmed!”
“Oh my God! Oh my god!” he gasped repeatedly as he filmed two locomotives and five fully loaded freight cars colliding with empty freight cars, derailing but remaining standing, causing $350,000 in damage.
“Are they OK?” he asked after the accident, though thankfully no one was hurt.
The charges stem from a search warrant issued for the boy earlier this month. Capitol City Rail Productions/YouTube
According to Fox Nebraska, the boy was the first to report the derailment and approached investigators at the scene and showed them the footage.
The suspect was charged Wednesday after investigators obtained a search warrant and seized the cellphone and 4K digital recorder he used to capture the wild footage, which he also provided to local news stations, according to KOLN.
According to the outlet, he was convicted of two counts of criminal damage to property causing more than $5,000 in damage, both felonies that carry penalties including fines of up to $15,000 per count and up to seven years in prison.
When authorities said they didn’t know what caused the derailment, the boy responded, “Obviously the switch was pushed the wrong way,” the affidavit states. Capitol City Rail Productions/YouTube The switch was supposed to have a padlock installed, but investigators discovered it was missing. Capitol City Rail Productions/YouTube
The train’s conductor told investigators that as the train approached the crossing, he noticed the switch was out of position, KOLN reported.
He tried to make an emergency stop, but was unable to do so before he reached where the missing switch was supposed to be.
Investigators later discovered that the padlock that should have been attached to the switch was missing, indicating the switch had been tampered with.
The boy denied trespassing on the property or tampering with the switch, but investigators wrote in the report that he knew where the switch was and how it worked.
Authorities later examined surveillance camera footage from the scene and found a car and a driver traveling near the scene just before the derailment.
The video shows a beige 1996 Buick Park Avenue driving through the area and then a 17-year-old male is seen walking down the south side of the tracks toward the switch, according to the affidavit.
A motion was filed to transfer the case from juvenile court to county court.