'I Am Gold-Collar': Driverless Tesla Backseat Rider Basks In Social Media Notoriety As He Flaunts His Wealth

SAN FRANCISCO (CBS) -- Param Sharma, a man arrested for riding in the backseat of a driverless Tesla in San Francisco, has documented himself performing the stunt in videos posted on his Instagram account, which is filled with other posts celebrating his luxury "gold collar" lifestyle and trolling "blue-collar peasants."

Sharma was arrested over the weekend and identified as the man spotted riding across the San Francisco Bay Bridge in the back seat of a Tesla Model 3 operating on "Autopilot" mode with no one in the driver's seat.

Param Sharma (Alameda County Sheriff's Office)

The California Highway Patrol said Sharma was arrested without incident and booked into Santa Rita Jail on two counts of reckless driving and disobeying a peace officer. Before his arrest, the CHP had posted images of a man doing the same thing in two other incidents.

Sharma himself posted videos on what appears to be his Instagram account @goldcollarlavish where he is seen apparently basking in his notoriety. In one video, he is shown in the back seat of a Tesla reading news accounts of the driverless Tesla passenger while trolling the CHP.

In another video, the point-of-view is of a person again in the back seat of a Tesla at night on a freeway while looking at a tablet, where a map appears to show the vehicle heading north on Interstate Highway 280 in Hillsborough.

Another post is a screen capture of a news account of his driverless exploits, with the caption, "I came outta the pandemic in a self driving car U blue blue collar peasants can't understand my life."

The @goldcollarlavish account is a celebration of Sharma's lifestyle, where he flaunts his material wealth while also trolling those who are not at his level.

"You see this car? You peasants can't afford this car.," says Sharma as he smirks at the camera in one post.

"You guys r all cheap poor low class peasants that can't afford lambo trucks and i11's I purposely drive it in ur ghetto to make you feel small," reads the caption in another post.

Other posts from previous years show him posing with stacks of cash, luxury items, and even pouring Pellegrino water down the toilet.

Sharma is used to the notoriety. Eight years ago, he was featured in a Vice article documenting his rich brat persona and ability to troll celebrities on the internet. The article referred to an Instagram account with a quarter-million followers, which is now inactive.