(KTLA) — An influencer’s celebration of her custom car being turned into a die-cast model quickly turned to panic as the vehicle that inspired it all – a custom $150,000 Chevy Camaro – was stolen at an event in California.
Autumn Spooner is an automotive influencer who flew into Southern California to celebrate and promote the launch of a die-cast replica of her custom real-life Chevy Camaro ZL1.
Her prized possession was stolen on Friday evening while it was being displayed in the parking lot at South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa, according to a spokesperson for Spooner. She had left it in the care of Jada Toys, a brand that was displaying the car as part of the launch, the spokesperson said.
“This was meant to be a milestone moment for Autumn, as her real-life ZL1 inspired the release of a die-cast replica,” the spokesperson added. “Instead, it’s become a nightmare…no formal agreement was signed transferring liability, and the situation has left her devastated and without answers.”
Spooner herself posted a video to Instagram to clarify the situation, saying she was “literally on the plane” to California when she received the gut-wrenching news.
“Basically, I transported it [to California] and got [to Costa Mesa] around 2 p.m.,” she said in the video, which was posted late Friday night. “As I was boarding the plane, I got a call that my Camaro was stolen, which definitely was not the call I wanted to get.”
Posts to Spooner’s Instagram story allegedly show the car being driven eastbound on the 91 Freeway near the interchange with the 57 Freeway. The Camaro, which she had wrapped in purple, had been unwrapped and the license plate removed; however, according to Spooner, her Instagram handle was left on the car.
A video previously posted by Spooner, who has more than half a million followers across her social media platforms, indicated that the die-cast model was part of Jada Toys’ Pink Slips line, and the toy maker’s website states that the car, a 1:24 scale model, becomes available for pre-order on Saturday afternoon. That said, the $25 model was already sold out by 7 a.m. Saturday.
Spooner’s Instagram bio states she is an Arizona resident who, in addition to the Camaro ZL1, also owns a BMW G80 M3 and a BMW E36 M3.
