American YouTuber Johnny Somali, whose legal name is Ramsey Khalid Ismael, has been sentenced to six months in prison by a South Korean court for multiple offenses. The Seoul Western District Court handed down the sentence on Wednesday, finding him guilty on all eight charges brought against him. The court also sentenced him to 20 days of detention and barred him from working at institutions involving children, adolescents, and people with disabilities for five years.
He was taken into custody immediately after the ruling over concerns that he is a flight risk. Prosecutors had sought a three-year prison sentence and a fine of 150,000 won (£75), but the judges handed down a lower sentence, noting the 'absence of severe harm to victims'. He was convicted over a series of offences including obstruction of business, distributing fabricated sexually explicit content, and repeated disturbances.
Incidents included blasting music and spilling cup noodle broth at a convenience store in Seoul's Mapo district in October 2024. He also disrupted passengers on buses and subway trains by playing loud music and dancing. Charges were brought after he live-streamed a disturbance at Lotte World amusement park in the Songpa District that blocked passengers from boarding rides.
The court said the defendant repeatedly committed crimes against unspecified members of the public to generate profit via YouTube and distributed the content in disregard of Korean law. The court added that he displayed 'severe' disrespect for South Korean law, noting that he offended countless people with livestreamed stunts aimed at generating YouTube revenue. The court said the evidence supported all charges.
He first gained notoriety in Japan in 2023, where he filmed himself engaging in disruptive behaviour including playing racist songs on trains and making vulgar comments. In October 2024, he uploaded a video showing him kissing and making sexually suggestive gestures beside the Statue of Peace in Seoul, which memorialises Korean women forced into sexual slavery by Japanese occupying forces before and during World War II. He apologized for the Statue of Peace video after facing a backlash and removed the clip.
He had been indicted in 2024 and barred from leaving the country as proceedings unfolded. He had been free throughout the trial before the ruling. Before Wednesday's hearing, he told reporters he was remorseful and wanted to apologize to the people of Korea.