Yucaipa couple, known for YouTube videos, sentenced for causing crashes to collect insurance money [The Press-Enterprise]

A Yucaipa couple was sentenced this week after an investigation revealed they intentionally caused collisions to collect insurance payouts and posted videos of crashes and road-rage incidents on YouTube, officials said on Wednesday.

Christopher Phelps, 41, and his wife, Kimberly Phelps, 40, pleaded no contest to felony counts of insurance fraud, child abuse and assault with a deadly weapon, according to the California Department of Insurance. They were sentenced Monday in San Bernardino County Superior Court.

The couple was arrested in March after an investigation by the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department led authorities to a YouTube channel connected to Christopher Phelps under the username “BLU3 GHO57.” The 41-year-old had previously been arrested in February after he posted a dashcam video that involved a suspicious collision where he appeared to stop for no reason and caused a truck pulling a trailer to rear-end his car, authorities said.

In total, around 162 dashcam videos involving the couple were posted on the channel, including several incidents where their child was also in the car. The account contained 42 road rage incidents, attempted collisions involving Christopher Phelps and 23 documented crashes linked to 17 insurance claims he filed, the Insurance Department said in a statement. The agency earlier released some of the videos as it sought witnesses for the investigation.

“The reckless and fraudulent behavior of the co-defendants posed a danger to society while risking the safety of their own child,” San Bernardino County District Attorney Jason Anderson said in a news release.

Christopher Phelps had his driver’s license revoked and was sentenced to three years in state prison. Kimberly Phelps, who is currently out on bail, was sentenced to 90 days in weekend county jail/work release and three years of supervised probation. She will also be required to attend a 52-week child abuse prevention program, officials said.

“Our office is confident that in addition to defendant Phelps’s prison term and ordered restitution to all victims, public safety in San Bernardino County will be greatly increased by his lifetime revocation of driving privileges,” Anderson said in a statement.

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