"I Am the Second Coming of Jesus, Humanity Will Soon Perish"... YouTuber Who Collected 5 Billion Won Over 2 Years Under Investigation for Fraud

Demanded donations and collected hundreds of thousands of won for books
Also accused of stalking and defamation

Police image. Photo by The Asia Business Daily

A YouTuber who introduced himself as the Second Coming of Jesus and swindled money is now under police investigation.

According to Yonhap News on January 27, the Hwaseong Dongtan Police Station in Gyeonggi Province announced that it is investigating Mr. A on charges of fraud and violating the Act on the Collection and Use of Donations.

Mr. A, who has been working as a writing instructor mainly through YouTube and online communities, is accused of calling himself the Second Coming of Jesus for over two years, claiming that the end of humanity is imminent, and soliciting donations under the pretext of constructing a new temple, which he then kept for himself.

According to JTBC, Mr. A asserted that the end of the world was rapidly approaching, collected 300,000 won per lecture and hundreds of thousands of won for books, and demanded donations to a corporate account containing the number 4, which he claimed was a sacred number.

Recently, the police received complaints from a total of four people. Detailed information regarding the period and amount of damages suffered by the complainants has not been disclosed.

It has also been reported that one of the complainants filed additional charges against Mr. A for stalking and defamation.

A police official stated, "We have just received the complaints," and added, "Other than the fact that an investigation is underway, we cannot provide further details."