Key Takeaways
- Legal proceedings against Johnny Somali in South Korea could prevent him from leaving the country for months.
- Potential for Somali to be in trial until summer, facing significant jail time if convicted.
- Somali facing multiple criminal charges, including obstruction of business and possibly narcotics possession.
A lawyer looking into the case against Johnny Somali in South Korea has shed some new light on what the next few months may hold for the YouTube streamer. Somali has been unable to leave South Korea in November, following numerous controversial and inflammatory actions performed by the YouTube streamer.
Prior to Somali’s behavior in South Korea, the streamer had already been traveling the world and creating trouble. Somali was arrested in Japan as well as Tel Aviv, but ultimately managed to get out of both situations with mere bans and fines. South Korea, it seems, may not be letting him off as lightly.
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In a recent YouTube stream, attorney Andrew Esquire spoke about the burgeoning case against Somali in South Korea on his own channel, Legal Mindset. Esquire notes that a normal trial could take up to six months, during which time Somali will be unable to leave South Korea. The streamer isn’t able to make income off of his streaming while he’s there, either, putting him in a financial bind the longer he’s stuck in the country. This may be part of the reason why he’s chosen to have a public defender defend him in court, but according to Esquire, he’s also up against a prosecutor with a known 90% win rate against obstruction of business cases.
The Case Against Johnny Somali May Be Intensifying
While Johnny Somali has repeatedly claimed that he expects to come home to the US without doing any jail time, there’s next to no evidence to support that. In addition to the base obstruction of business accusation he was charged with after his actions at a 7-11, there are ongoing investigations into him possibly having carried narcotics and spread North Korean propoganda. Esqurie says that more criminal charges will be filed this week or the coming week against Somali, as well. A potential narcotics charge alone could put Somali in jail for a decade-long sentence, while the current obstruction of business charge could put him behind bars for five years.
For now, it remains to be seen what exactly Somali will be charged with going forward. However, by Esquire’s estimates, Somali’s trial will likely kick off just before the holiday season in December, and it could take six months for him to be done with it, assuming that’s the only charge and trial held against him. While the outcome is unknown for now, it’s likely that Somali will spend months or even years away from his streaming fanbase.