Johnny Somali, an American YouTuber, apologizes in a video on Thursday for kissing a statue symbolizing Korean victims of wartime sexual slavery. Captured from YouTube

Johnny Somali, a 24-year-old American YouTuber who stirred controversy in Korea by kissing a girl statue symbolizing Korean victims of wartime sexual slavery, has apologized.

However, despite his apology, viewers are skeptical, noting that Somali has left various controversial photos and videos on his social media accounts.

On Thursday, the YouTube channel Jcompany posted a video of Somali visiting the girl statue at Changdong History and Culture Park in Dobong District, Seoul, where he apologized to the Korean public.

In the video, Somali said, "I want to apologize to Koreans. I didn't understand the significance of the statue." He explained that his actions were meant to entertain his American viewers. Standing next to the statue, he bowed and added in Korean, "I'm truly sorry for being disrespectful."

Somali also expressed an interest in learning more about the history of Japan's wartime sex slavery, or euphemistically, the "comfort women," who survived these atrocities. He said that he was willing to meet the survivors in person, interview them, and learn about their history.

However, viewers questioned Somali's sincerity, noting that he has yet to delete various photos and videos of his controversial actions in Korea from his social media accounts.

Johnny Somali's Instagram account still shows controversial photos as of Friday. / Captured from Johnny Somali's Instagram

Somali recently posted a picture holding a photo of former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, captioning it, "I defeated Koreans for you, Shinzo Abe." As of Friday, the YouTube post has been deleted, but the Instagram photo remains, with the caption changed to "RIP Shinzo Abe!"

Other contentious content includes a video of Somali lying down and dancing in a subway car, which has not been removed. While Somali deleted videos of himself disrespecting the girl statue and causing a disturbance in a convenience store — incidents that led to police investigations — some content remains.

The Seoul Mapo Police said on Oct. 31 that Somali was being investigated for obstruction of business due to his behavior in the convenience store. In addition to a police inquiry into alleged assault and drug use, Somali is currently under an "exit ban" preventing him from leaving the country.

This article from the Hankook Ilbo, a sister publication of The Korea Times, is translated by a generative AI and edited by The Korea Times.