TikToker Admits He Lied About Jumping That Tesla to Go Viral [UPDATED]
Durte Dom says he saw the video on YouTube and immediately started editing himself into the situation.
Everything's getting even more complicated with the 2018 Tesla Model S that jumped over an LA intersection this past weekend. For those who haven't seen the clip, it's both unbelievable to watch and frustrating to see, especially on a public street. Now, contrary to what seemed like the case on Monday, at least one witness at the scene is saying that social media personality Dominykas "Durte Dom" Zeglaitis, who claimed to be the driver of the electric sedan, wasn't actually behind the wheel at the time of the crash. The LAPD considers Zeglaitis a person of interest based on his social media posts, but Alex Choi—a YouTuber who posted a video of the crash online shortly after—claims he wasn't even at the scene.
Updated on 3/22/2022 at 3:30 p.m. ET: A few hours after this story was published, Zeglaitis confirmed he was not driving the Model S. He wasn't even at the scene—he saw Choi's video from home and edited clips to make it seem like he was behind the wheel. This all became public in a video posted to his YouTube channel as he couldn't post to TikTok since his account was banned.
Zeglaitis was contacted by police and even made an appearance on the local news when a film crew visited his house. He alluded that it was a sham by saying "You can't believe everything you see on the internet." He closed his video by saying, "The media likes to capitalize on the downfall of public figures and if they don't have a story to attack, they will create one."
According to the LAPD, the Tesla wasn't owned by the driver; it was actually rented from Enterprise. Police have reportedly yet to speak to the person whose name is tied to the car, but they say that will happen soon. Just because that individual rented the Tesla, though, doesn't mean they were the one who jumped it.
What we know for sure is still hazy, then, and it's worth noting that what one social media personality says about another should be taken with a grain of salt.
One victim of the stunt, Jordan Hook, had his Subaru rendered inoperable when the Model S landed and crashed into it. Hook started a GoFundMe to help raise money for a replacement, but Choi then admitted to using a YouTube copyright procedure to take down a video posted by Hook. Choi says Hook's clip falsely claimed that he "orchestrated and coordinated the stunt," and states that he was simply a witness. This was followed by a $2,000 donation to Hook's GoFundMe.
Choi was hosting a Tesla meet-up before the incident occurred—one he claims the driver of the jumped Model S participated in. Once the meet was over, Choi says the driver of the Tesla wanted to show him where social media star David Dobrik had jumped his Model X last year. Choi, who claims he did not know the driver, obliged, and that's when the incident occurred. His recap of the incident goes into detail about what happened, but it's unclear if Choi is talking with the police to locate the driver.
Zeglaitis' TikTok account has been banned since the incident occurred, but his YouTube account is still up, and it has a clip showing the crash. He posted the update saying it was all a sham around mid-day Tuesday.
So the hunt is still on for the driver of the Tesla, with no major updates from police since the search began in earnest. We reached out to the LAPD in an attempt to see if any progress had been made on finding the driver, but we have yet to hear back as of publishing.
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