American YouTuber Ramsey Khalid Ismael, known as Johnny Somali, has been sentenced to six months in prison by a court in South Korea.

The Seoul Western District Court delivered the ruling on Wednesday, stating that Mr Ismael repeatedly committed crimes against members of the public in order to generate profit through YouTube content, while showing disregard for South Korean law.

“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 said.

Mr Ismael was indicted in October 2024 on several charges, including obstruction of business and violations of minor public order laws.

He was accused of uploading a video showing him kissing a “Comfort Woman Statue” and dancing provocatively in front of it.

The statue honours victims of Japan’s wartime sexual slavery.

He also faced accusations of causing disturbances on public transport and in recreational spaces, including buses, subways, and an amusement park, as well as damaging a convenience store in Seoul.

The trial was initially scheduled for March, but prosecutors delayed the case after additional charges were filed.

These included allegations that he distributed a deepfake sexual video featuring himself and a local female YouTuber.

He was also accused of using artificial intelligence to create deepfake images involving Korean streamers and boasting about having a girlfriend.

South Korea passed a law in September 2024 imposing penalties of up to seven years in prison or fines of up to 30 million won (about $20,000) for the possession or distribution of explicit manipulated content involving other individuals.

According to the Korea Herald, prosecutors requested a three-year sentence; however, the court handed down a reduced punishment, noting the “absence of severe harm to victims”.

Alongside the prison term, the court also imposed a five-year restriction preventing the YouTuber from working in institutions related to children and adolescents.

He was taken into custody immediately following the ruling.

Following the statue incident, he issued a public apology in a video recorded beside the statue, saying, “I just want to apologise for what I’ve done and I did not mean to hurt you guys’ pride this much and I will no longer talk about your statue or touch it ever again.”