It is difficult to explain the television success of the Harrison clan, from ‘The Pawn Shop’, without noticing the figure of Chumlee. Austin Russell, a high school friend of Corey Harrison, one of Rick Harrison’s sons, was hired to work at the business and from the first moment he adopted a more comical profile compared to the rest of the production’s protagonists.
After the premiere of ‘The Pawn Shop’ back in 2009, Chumlee became increasingly better known. In fact, his work opened doors for him in other fictions such as ‘The Restaurateurs’, ‘iCarly’ or ‘The Tonight Show’. The doors of success, however, were closed to him overnight after being implicated in a case of sexual abuse.
The events occurred in 2016. The Las Vegas Police went to his house with a search warrant for his alleged connection to a case of sexual abuse. However, his involvement could never be proven, although he was arrested for illegal possession of weapons and possession of drugs at his home. In fact, Russell himself pleaded guilty to avoid going to prison, which led to him being on probation for three years.
A turning point
His arrest was an immense turning point in his life. From that moment on, Chumlee went to consultations to treat his drug addiction and decided to start a diet that has allowed him, years later, lose more than 70 kilos. Of course, with a stomach reduction surgery involved.
His partner, Tania Hyjazi, played an important role in this weight loss process. A chef by profession in a Las Vegas restaurant, she is also responsible for preparing the dishes that appear on her menu. They have been together since 2013 and even made a brief cameo in one of the installments of ‘La casa de los empeños’.
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