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YouTube prankster Michael Alexander Philippou wants to race police underwater

Emily CosenzaAAP
VideoMichael Philippou's water-filled car made headlines across the globe and racked up more than 1.2 million views on YouTube.

An “underwater car race” against South Australian police is something an Adelaide prankster and his twin brother would like to do, despite getting in hot water over a similar stunt.

Michael Alexander Philippou, 28, was charged with a string of offences after being filmed driving a car filled with water through a local bottle shop drive- through.

The video was uploaded on the RackaRacka YouTube channel in January last year and has since been viewed more than 1.4 million times.

“The police are going to reconstruct the car with taxpayers’ money,” Philippou’s brother Danny told reporters outside court on Friday.

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“If they do that, I’d like to put my hand forward to drive the car. Someone needs to test it.

If they’re going to make an underwater car, we have one so we can have a race and see who gets to the bottle shop first.

A police prosecutor told Christies Beach Magistrates Court the underwater car would need to be recreated to determine if the charges of driving dangerously and without due care against Philippou would proceed.

“It would depend on whether we could obtain enough evidence to prove that the manner in which the car was driven was so inherently unsafe,” he said.

“That would require someone with a bit more knowledge to assess the vehicle - in relation to what the weight of the water inside the (car) would have put on the vehicle, the effect it would have on its stopping, turning, accelerating.”

Philippou put on a show outside court, telling reporters he had “strippers“ lined up for a planned trip to America, despite his bail conditions barring him from leaving the state.

“We’re selling the script, selling some movies and we’re filming one this year,“ he said.

Michael Philippou reacts to a man dressed in a costume as he departs the Christies Beach Magistrates’ Court.
Camera IconMichael Philippou reacts to a man dressed in a costume as he departs the Christies Beach Magistrates’ Court. Credit: SAM WUNDKE/AAPIMAGE

Philippou’s defence lawyer told the court his client’s bail conditions were limiting his work.

“My client is a filmmaker who has a number of projects ongoing including in the United States which he does have plans to attend in April for two weeks,” Joseph Henderson said.

“He has a number of scripts that are being sold and projects he has on foot.

“He has been able to advance those projects to some degree via Skype and telephones but there comes a point where he will need to go over.”

Philippou will apply to leave the state once his lawyer provides documentation of his movements, return flights, appointments and reasons to travel.

He will face court again on April 28.

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