HOUSTON – A $200,000 bond has been set for YouTube star Corey Pritchett Jr. after he appeared before a judge Thursday morning for a case involving kidnapping, a high-speed chase, and alleged death threats, according to court documents.
Pritchett, who has over 15 million followers across all social media platforms, including more than a million subscribers to his Life With CoreySSG YouTube channel, has been charged with two counts of aggravated kidnapping after allegedly abducting two women, threatening their lives, and fleeing to Qatar.
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READ: YouTuber Corey Pritchett Jr. arrested on kidnapping charges after fleeing to Qatar
He was arrested at a Houston airport and booked into the Harris County Jail, where his bond was set at $100,000 for each charge, totaling $200,000. According to his financial affidavit, Pritchett has requested a public defender, reporting $0 in monthly income and no listed assets.
What happened in court
Prosecutors read the probable cause in the case, and the defense attorney asked the judge to reduce the bond, but the state opposed the request.
Given his flight risk, the defense attorney argued that Pritchett voluntarily returned to the U.S. after traveling to Dubai. However, the court sided with the state, declining to reduce his bond and leaving it at $200,000. Pritchett was given the following bond conditions:
- He must wear GPS monitoring due to being a flight risk.
- He is prohibited from contacting the victims including if they reach out to him.
- He must surrender his passport and any other foreign documents.
- He can’t drink or use drugs that are prescribed.
During the probable cause reading, prosecutors noted that Pritchett also has an outstanding warrant in Georgia, although details about the warrant have not been released.
What happened
One of the victims said she met Corey on Nov. 22, 2024, and exchanged numbers with him, records show. The next day, she and another woman met Corey for a workout, followed by an ATV outing and bowling.
At the bowling alley, Corey and his two male friends began acting “suspicious,” repeatedly looking around and appearing on edge, records show. The women learned that Corey and his friends had issues with another group at the alley.
Concerned about his behavior, the women told investigators they asked him to leave with his friends if they continued acting suspiciously. Corey reportedly stepped out with his friends, leaving the women inside the bowling alley.
After a significant amount of time passed, the women texted Corey, stating that they had left their belongings in his car. Corey responded, asking them to meet him at an H-E-B parking lot nearby to retrieve their belongings. Once there, Corey offered to drive them home, and the women agreed.
During the drive, Corey reportedly began behaving erratically and diverted from their intended route, claiming someone was after him and making frantic phone calls. The women told investigators he drove westbound on I-10 at speeds exceeding 100 mph. Corey then pulled out a gold-colored handgun, waved it through the sunroof while driving, and fired several rounds out of the car window.
The document detailed that Corey called another woman on a video chat and asked, “If I had the perfect opportunity and was in the middle of nowhere where no one could hear them scream, should I just go ahead and do it?” She reportedly replied, “Yes.”
The women stated Corey told them, “I’m gonna [explicit] y’all and then kill y’all,” according to documents.
As the victims texted each other during the incident, Corey reportedly pointed the gun at both of them and took their phones to cut off communication. Documents show that Corey pulled over on the shoulder of Interstate 10 near Sealy, Texas, and reportedly told the women to get out of his car, saying, “This is your only opportunity.”
One woman stated she tried to reach for her cell phone but was unsuccessful. Corey then drove off, leaving them stranded at night.
The women stated they spent over an hour walking along the side of a dark highway before flagging down a driver, calling 911, and being assisted by Waller County deputies.
Investigators used GPS data from a Life360 app one of the women had, which corroborated their story. Screenshots also provided timestamps and the route, supporting the victims’ accounts of the abduction.
Corey was identified via his driver’s license and social media. When investigators attempted to contact him, his phone was “no longer in service.” Investigators also reached out to his ex-wife, Carmen Pritchett, a well-known YouTube and social media personality with over 5 million followers on Instagram.
Investigators later learned Corey posted on TikTok and Instagram that he was leaving the country to start a new life in Dubai. The FBI confirmed that Corey purchased a one-way ticket and fled to Qatar on Dec. 9, 2024.
