A popular YouTuber with more than 10million subscribers was arrested earlier this month for allegedly evading taxes on the purchase of a $400,000 Ferrari that he allegedly set on fire in a video.
Cody Detwiler, 27, purchased a 2020 Ferrari F8 Tributo in 2023 to use in a ‘durability test’ series on his WhistlinDiesel YouTube channel.
The tests would lead to the car igniting and being completely destroyed, and Detwiler has now been charged with ‘unlawfully and willfully’ evading ‘tax due to the State of Tennessee in an amount of five hundred dollars ($500) or more,’ according to Williamson County Circuit Court documents.
The documents directly cite the sports car, although they do not explicitly mention its appearance in Detwiler’s videos.
Over the past two days, the YouTuber made two posts on his Instagram account discussing the arrest. The first post included his mugshot and images of him being taken away by police, along with a caption that read: ‘Won so big they thought I was cheating. (100% real not AI).’
The last part of that caption was likely in reference to the fact that Detwiler had previously staged a fake arrest with the assistance of a Georgia Sheriff’s office in 2022 for another video.
The next day, he made a post with a video of him being escorted in handcuffs by a police officer while talking about his experience being arrested.
He wrote a long caption that said: ‘Yes I was arrested and it’s 100% real. 6 cops showed up at my door and said they had a warrant for “Tax Evasion.” They didn’t explain why or how or when, and I still don’t know.
Cody Detwiler, 27, purchased a 2020 Ferrari F8 Tributo in 2023 to use in a ‘durability test’ series on his WhistlinDiesel YouTube channel
The tests would lead to the car igniting and being completely destroyed
Detwiler was arrested on charges of tax evasion related to the $400,000 Ferrari
Detwiler’s tax evasion charges are a Class E felony. If found guilty, he would face one to six years in prison and a maximum fine of $3,000
‘After the cops squeezing the handcuffs super tight I got taken to jail and spent a few hours there until my team bailed me out. I got a cell and everything. I have ALWAYS paid ALL of my taxes and I’m still not sure what this is all for, I didn’t get a notice of any sort leading up to this. There is a court date set and I will give active updates.’
Detwiler’s indictment was sworn into Williamson County Courts on November 5, one week before he was arrested. He made bail that was set at $20,000.
The charges of tax evasion are a Class E felony. If found guilty, the YouTuber would face one to six years in prison and a maximum fine of $3,000.
The same charges were also placed against Detwiler’s business, WHISTLINDIESEL, LLC.
The Ferrari in Detwiler’s videos had a Montana license plate, indicating that it was registered in that state. Doing so is a popular loophole among supercar purchasers, as Montana has no sales tax on vehicles.
The video of the Ferrari burning has garnered a whopping 16million views
Detwiler posted this and other photos and videos from his arrest to his Instagram account
Detwiler is known for doing ‘durability tests’ on all kinds of vehicles for his YouTube channel
The sales tax in Tennessee is seven percent, and additional local or county taxes could raise that level closer to ten percent. On the high end, that would have added $40,000 to the car’s price.
It is unclear whether the out-of-state registration is directly involved in the tax evasion charges.
The Daily Mail has reached out to Detwiler and the Williamson County Sheriff’s Office for comment and additional details.
Detwiler is known for pushing all kinds of vehicles past their limits, which is exactly what he did with the sports car.
The Ferrari appeared in three videos on the WhistlinDiesel channel, in which Detwiler subjected it to all kinds of abuse.
Detwiler’s WhistlinDiesel YouTube channel has more than 10million subscribers
A rental van that Detwiler’s team was filming from and parked right next to the burning Ferrari also ignited, and both vehicles were destroyed
In one of the videos, which has garnered 7.1million views, Detwiler drifts with the sports car on dirt roads, saws one of the mirrors off, sits on the hood while fishing, drives around with a capybara in the front seat and pelts the windows with fruit and rocks.
In the last video, he drives the Ferrari through a dry cornfield. The highly flammable husks appear to make their way into the car’s wheels and engine, which begin to ignite while Detwiler is still behind the wheel.
He and another person in the passenger seat quickly get out as the fire spreads and becomes uncontrollable. A rental van that his team was filming from and parked right next to the burning Ferrari also ignited, and both vehicles were destroyed.
That video has garnered a whopping 16million views.