The Bugatti Veyron is an amazing car that can do a lot of things – which, no doubt, you have read and heard about a gazillion times by now.

What it can’t do, though, is run across water. If you are one of the 2.5 million viewers who watched the video on YouTube (or Carscoop), then you must remember the much talked about incident from 2009 when a Veyron veered off the road and dived into a saltwater lagoon in Galvestone, Texas.

The driver and owner of the Veyron, Andy House, claimed at the time that a low-flying pelican distracted him and he then jerked the wheel, dropped his cell phone, and eventually lost control of the $2 million car ending up in the lake.

The popular video, however, that was filmed by someone driving on an adjacent road shows no pelican in sight – just the Veyron going for a dip.

Now, a jury in Texas is to decide whether House is telling the truth or if he intentionally drowned the Veyron to collect a $2 million insurance.

House received a $1 million interest-free loan from Lloyd Gillespie in 2009 to buy the 2006 Veyron. He then obtained collector-vehicle insurance from Philadelphia Indemnity Insurance Company [PIIC], due to the nature of the car, and listed Gillespie as a loss payee.

At this point, the plot thickens: within weeks of insuring the car, PIIC received a $2 million claim from House. Naturally, the insurance company conducted its own investigation.

According to PIIC, the investigation came to the conclusion that this was not an accident and that House had intentionally driven the million-dollar car into the lagoon to get the collector-vehicle insurance.

Therefore, it filed a federal complaint against both House and Lloyd Gillespie, adding that the collector-vehicle status was not valid since, at the time of the accident, House had put over 1,200 miles on the Bugatti’s odometer using it as an everyday car.

The insurance company says not only were there no skid marks on the road, but it interviewed the man who taped the incident and he reported not seeing a pelican or House drop his cell phone.

Moreover, the company claims “reports from witnesses at the scene stated that Mr. House did not appear overly upset at the loss of the vehicle” but left the engine running for at least 15 minutes while the vehicle was in the lagoon, causing irreparable damages.

In the insurance company’s complaint, it is stated that “Defendant House confirmed this fact and attributed leaving the vehicle running because he was being bitten by mosquitoes around the vehicle.”

U.S. Magistrate Judge John Froeschner rejected House and Gillespie’s request for a summary judgment stating, “In the humble opinion of this court, this case involves quizzical factual circumstances that compel credibility determinations which this court may not make at the summary judgment stage.”

We saved the best for last.

In what resembles a cliché from a B-movie, the insurance claims that “a confidential informant stated that Mr. House offered to pay him money to steal the car and burn it, making the disappearance of the vehicle appear to be a theft so that Mr. House could obtain the insurance money.”

After the lagoon incident, the informant confronted House who, PIIC says, offered him a portion of the insurance money if he kept his mouth shut during the trial.

If you missed the videos the first time, you can watch the drowned Veyron in the clips right after the jump.

Story References: Courthouse news via Dupont Registry

VIDEOS