Streamer Vitaly claims he lost $400k as lawyers “scammed” him over prison time

YouTuber Vitaly Zdorovetskiy claims he lost about $400,000 in legal fees while in prison in the Philippines, alleging he was defrauded by several lawyers.

In April 2025, Vitaly, a popular online prankster, was arrested in the Philippines. His recent broadcasts showed him behaving controversially, including harassing people, stealing items, attempting to kiss a security guard, and even trying to take a gun.

He received a prison sentence, and authorities used his case to warn others against disruptive online behavior. Even Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. expressed strong disapproval, stating he was angered by the streamer’s actions.

Vitaly was freed from prison in January 2026 and sent back to Russia. Since then, he’s been active online and has even started streaming again.

Vitaly reveals cost of legal help over Philippines arrest

During a recent livestream, Zdorovetskiy explained that he tried getting help from legal aid services to be released, but ended up feeling like he was defrauded by several lawyers.

He admitted to spending a huge amount of money over ten months, saying it was so high it would shock people. He anticipated viewers might guess around $1000, but the actual cost was closer to $400,000. He explained that he was also scammed by three lawyers, making an already difficult situation even worse.

Some viewers questioned Vitaly as to whether he meant $400,000 or 400,000 Philippine pesos. 

Right now, $400,000 is equivalent to 23.4 million Philippine pesos. But if someone paid 400,000 pesos, it would only be worth about $7,000.

The streamer shared that he documented his time in jail by making vlogs, which he was able to do after bribing officials for access to a phone. This led to the firing of three officials who had given him preferential treatment.

According to Philstarlife, the Bureau of Immigration has confirmed the videos were taken around the time the Russian vlogger was arrested. However, the vlogger hasn’t published the complete videos yet.

Read More

2026-03-05 16:19