SAN FRANCISCO—A San Francisco man was arrested by CHP on Tuesday, May 11 for riding in the back of his Tesla while it was on “autopilot.” The driver was seen by several people riding in the back seat of his Tesla. The man posted videos of himself performing the act on his social media and pulled the same stunt after being released from jail.
25 year-old Param Sharma, has been charged with two counts of reckless driving and disobeying a peace officer. Sharma was seen in many videos taken by other drivers sitting in his back seat riding around San Francisco and other parts of the bay area. Sharma was booked into the Santa Rita County Jail and was later released but his Tesla was impounded.
In an interview conducted by KTVU on May 12, Sharma had already bought another Tesla and was already riding in the back seat again. “Yeah, I’m rich as (expletive),” Sharma told the reporter. Sharma was cited on April 27 by CHP in Oakland for “operating his vehicle in the same reckless manner.”
After being asked what he will do if he is arrested again and his Tesla is impounded again, Sharma stated, “I’ll just get a new Tesla every time. I have unlimited money to blow on Teslas.” The CHP could re-arrest Sharma just from the footage from the interview conducted by KTVU. Sharma posted a video of himself riding in the back seat of his Tesla on his Instagram with the caption “Bitch tell the chp I bought my license.”
No further information has been released by Police on any escalation in the case.
