UPDATED 5/12, 9:46 p.m. ET: California authorities have arrested the man who was seen in the backseat of a Tesla Model 3 without anyone behind the wheel.
According to the California Highway Patrol, the suspect was identified as 25-year-old Param Sharma, who was cited for similar behavior at the end of April. Sharma was booked in Santa Rita Jail in Alameda County, and slapped with a misdemeanor charges of reckless driving and disobeying a peace officer.
See the original story below.
The Golden Gate division of the California Highway Patrol is on the lookout for a man who seems to have been riding by himself in the backseat of a Tesla while it was driving itself on some Bay Area roads.
A pair of pictures, shown below, were posted onto the CHP’s Facebook page that show the unidentified guy looking pretty at ease all things considered. All we can really see is that he’s got dark hair, wears a baseball cap, and smiles broadly while cruising down the freeway without anyone at the steering wheel.
“The CHP received a report of the incident as third-hand information, and it is under investigation,” said CHP officials in the post.
That write-up did not include specific info on the location or the car, though it did say anyone witnessing similar fuckery (not their term, but would’ve worked) should immediately call 911.
The CHP’s Facebook post also did not label the man’s antics a crime, opting to call it an “unusual incident” instead.
Less than a week ago YouTuber Ingineerix put up a real brief clip of the person in question, as recorded by another driver. That clip is titled “Another dumba** abusing Tesla AP” and is simultaneously fascinating and alarming:
The caption for the video goes on to link to a Reddit thread that shows the same picture used in the CHP Facebook post, calling the guy out for his repeat risky behavior.
