Man arrested for riding in backseat of Tesla set on ‘Autopilot’

Multiple 911 calls alert CHP to man in car without a driver

OAKLAND (CBS SF) — The California Highway Patrol (CHP) on Tuesday announced the weekend arrest of the man spotted riding across the Bay Bridge in the back seat of a Tesla Model 3 operating on “Autopilot” mode with no one in the driver’s seat.

The California Highway Patrol said officers arrested 25-year-old Param Sharma on Sunday evening for reckless driving of a Tesla while in the backseat on Interstate 80 in the Bay Area. Authorities said Sharma was arrested without incident and booked into Santa Rita Jail on two counts of reckless driving and disobeying a peace officer.

The CHP Oakland Twitter account posted about the arrest early Tuesday evening.

According to the California Highway Patrol, on Sunday, May 10, at around 6:30 p.m., the CHP’s Golden Gate Division Communications Center received multiple 911 calls reporting an individual seated in the backseat of a Tesla Model 3 without anyone operating the vehicle in the driver’s seat.

The vehicle was reported to be traveling eastbound on I-80 across the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge toward the city of Oakland. An Oakland CHP motor officer at the Bay Bridge Toll Plaza spotted the Tesla, confirmed that a single occupant was seated in the backseat, and initiated an enforcement stop.

During the stop, the officer saw the individual move into the driver’s seat before bringing the Tesla to a stop on the shoulder of I-80 eastbound just west of Powell Street, where the officer arrested Sharma. The Tesla was towed from the scene for evidence. CHP said the incident remains under investigation.

Authorities said that this was not the first time Sharma had been cited for such behavior.

Prior to the Sunday arrest, members of the public had captured video of someone resembling Sharma operating a Tesla in the same reckless manner. An Oakland CHP officer had cited Sharma on April 27 for similar behavior.