Twin YouTubers charged over bank robbery 'prank'

CALIFORNIA: Twin brothers with a popular YouTube channel are accused of staging fake bank robberies in Irvine, California, causing an innocent Uber driver to be held at gunpoint by police.

Irvine residents Alan and Alex Stokes, both 23, face one felony count each of false imprisonment and a misdemeanor count of falsely reporting an emergency, the Orange County District Attorney’s Office said in a news release.

The brothers allegedly made two attempts to film a bogus bank robbery on Oct. 15, 2019. The pair was walking around dressed in all black, wearing ski masks and carrying duffel bags stuffed with cash, pretending they’d robbed a bank, as their videographer filmed to gain popularity on the internet.

Their videos often feature pranks on unsuspecting victims, officials said. The twin’s YouTube channel has some 4.8 million subscribers.

“These were not pranks,” police said in a statement. “These are crimes that could have resulted in someone getting seriously injured or even killed.”

The Stokes brothers each face up to four years in state prison if convicted as charged.