American live-streamer Johnny Somali sentenced to six months in prison

Added: 2026-05-05

[00:00:00]American live streamer Johnny Somali, who had caused an uproar in South Korea with his outrageous acts such as kissing the statue of peace, was sentenced to 6 months in prison. On Wednesday, the Seoul Western District Court sentenced him to 6 months in prison and 20 days of detention on charges including obstruction of business and distribution of fake obscene materials. The court also meted out a 5-year employment restriction banning him from working at institutions related to children and people with disabilities.

[00:00:32]The ruling comes about a year and 6 months after he caused public outrage during his travels in Korea.

[00:00:39]Johnny Somali was first put on trial in October 2024 for allegedly obstructing business operations at a convenience store in Mapo District, Seoul by playing loud music and pouring instant noodles onto a table after an employee stopped him from drinking alcohol. In the same month, he was also accused of causing discomfort in public by approaching multiple pedestrians while carrying a bag of odoriferous raw fish, playing loud music and dancing on buses and subways. During his travels in Korea, he even uploaded a video of himself kissing the statue of peace in Itaewon and performing a lewd dance in front of the monument. This act in particular has been seen as being extremely disrespectful as the statue symbolizes the suffering of Korean women who were used as sexual slaves during Japan's occupation of Korea in the first half of 20th century. Such outlandish behavior at the time drew huge backlash from Korean netizens and Somali got attacked multiple times on the streets by Korean YouTubers.

[00:01:41]The American live streamer later expressed regret over his past actions and publicly apologized. However, shortly after he made an apology, more charges were leveled against him such as distributing a deepfake video of him kissing a Korean female streamer. In March last year, Somali appeared at the court for his first hearing wearing a red Make America Great Again hat.

[00:02:05]When asked why he was wearing the hat, he said, "Because I'm an American citizen and South Korea is a vassal state of the United States." sparking further controversy.

[00:02:16]Then in July last year, during his live stream, Somali waved the Japanese Rising Sun flag saying Japan should reoccupy South Korea and referred to Tokto as Takeshima, the Japanese name for the Korean islands in the East Sea. After repeatedly engaging in such outrageous acts, Johnny Somali is currently on trial in Korea on seven charges that includes breaking the Minor Offenses Act. A departure ban was placed on him preventing him from leaving Korea.

[00:02:44]Prosecutors had earlier demanded 3 years in prison and a fine of 150,000 won for the American streamer.

[00:02:51]Meanwhile, both Somali and the prosecutor's office can appeal the case.