American YouTuber Johnny Somali, who has drawn outrage for antics such as kissing the "Statue of Peace," was sentenced to a prison term in the first trial and taken into custody. It comes about a year and six months after he triggered public anger with his behavior in Korea.
On the 15th, Criminal Division 1 single-judge panel Judge Park Gee-won of the Seoul Western District Court sentenced Somali, who was charged with obstruction of business and distribution of fabricated sexual images under the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment of Sexual Crimes, to six months in prison and 20 days of detention, and ordered a five-year employment ban at institutions related to children, teens, and people with disabilities.
Somali is accused of disrupting business in Oct. last year at a convenience store in Mapo District, Seoul, by blasting music and spilling cup noodle broth on a table. In the same month, he allegedly caused discomfort by carrying a foul-smelling bag of fish and approaching numerous passersby on a street in Mapo, and created a disturbance by boarding buses and the subway, blasting music and dancing.
At the time, Somali showed himself kissing the Statue of Peace and performing lewd dances via a YouTube live stream. He also engaged in antics such as using the Rising Sun Flag and shouting "Takeshima (the name Japan claims for Dokdo)."
At the first hearing of the initial trial, Somali at one point appeared in a white suit wearing a red hat with the phrase "Make America Great Again" (MAGA).
On Feb. 27, prosecutors sought a three-year prison term and a 150,000 won fine for Somali at the sentencing hearing in the first trial.