YouTuber Sam Eyles from Built Not Bought faces court and jokes to awaiting reporters
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A YouTuber facing charges for alleged “dangerous maneuvers” in a clown car has given nonsensical responses as reporters questioned him outside of court, seemingly unfazed by the seriousness of the allegations.
Sunshine Coast man Sam Eyles, 29, faces a dozen charges related to performing life-threatening stunts and posting them on social media.
The main offenses relate to a modified ‘clown car’ with bumper springs, a jerry can on the floor and shoddy brakes.
Eyles is alleged to have performed various stunts on the car, including repeated burnouts, front-wheel stalls, and even a car-versus-man tug-of-war.
Sam Eyles (center), 29, faces a dozen charges related to performing life-threatening stunts that he later shared on social media. He seemed completely unfazed as he answered nonsensical questions from reporters outside of court.
The main offenses relate to a modified ‘clown car’ with bumper springs, a jerry can on the floor and shoddy brakes.
On Monday, Eyles faced Maroochydore Magistrates Court where his bail was continued.
As part of his bail conditions, he had to surrender his passport and must not enter any international ports of departure.
As he walked out of court, Eyles appeared unconcerned with the charges and court proceedings, making bizarre and irrelevant comments to the waiting media.
Asked if he thought he was putting lives in danger by performing the stunts, Eyles said: “The thing is, because turtles smell with their feet, it makes you a lot better at golf.”
When a reporter asked: ‘You obviously don’t feel it then, do you?’ he responded, “Oh, basically, because Tom Cruise was riding his bike on top of the plane in Top Gun, it’s basically like… cars are so much faster than walking.”
Eyles then made a comment about “purple hair on the backs of monkeys in a zoo” before getting into a car and driving away.
Eyles joked and made irrelevant comments to reporters’ questions outside of court. Asked if he thought he was putting lives at risk by performing the stunts, Eyles said: “The thing is, because turtles smell with their feet, it makes you a lot better at golf.”
Eyles is alleged to have performed various stunts, including repeated burns, front wheel stands, and even a car vs. man tug of war.
After his court appearance, the Youtuber shared several clips on his Instagram of his meeting with journalists, applauding his own comments.
“Like I’m going to give good answers to someone trying to frame me,” Eyles wrote alongside the post.
His YouTube channel Built Not Bought, which has more than 200,000 subscribers, also allegedly shows the vehicle crashing at high speed on a highway in Beerwah on the inland Sunshine Coast before rolling down an embankment.
Mr. Eyles’s channel also has how-to videos on how to mod vehicles.
A search warrant was executed on a property in Image Flat on September 30, where officers seized various items, including the clown’s car.
Mr. Eyles faces various charges including dangerous driving of a motor vehicle, reckless driving, driving with a passenger without a seat belt, and driving a defective vehicle.
Mr. Eyles was later charged with multiple crimes, including dangerous driving of a motor vehicle, reckless driving, driving with a passenger without a seat belt, and driving a defective vehicle.
Speaking about the YouTuber’s stunts, Sunshine Coast District Superintendent Craig Hawkins previously said his ‘antics’ put both his life and the lives of his friends at risk.
“Putting not only your own life, but your peers’ lives at risk for the sake of social media notoriety is childish and selfish behavior,” Superintendent Hawkins said.
“Sharing these antics with his large contingent of online followers has come at a significant financial cost, both in fines and lost vehicles.”
Eyeles will return to court next year.
His Built Not Bought YouTube channel, which has more than 200,000 subscribers, also allegedly shows the crash of the speeding vehicle in Beerwah before rolling down an embankment.