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Critical reported severity Involving minors Criminal Charges

UK prosecutors say a Greater Manchester man used AI tools to turn photos of real children into sexual abuse images he sold to order; jailed for 18 years in 2024

The Crown Prosecution Service said on 28 October 2024 that a man from Bolton had been sentenced at Bolton Crown Court to 18 years' imprisonment with an additional six years on extended licence after pleading guilty to 16 child sexual abuse offences. According to the CPS, he used a computer programme and AI technology to alter photographs of real children into sexual abuse images, which he made to order for people in encrypted chatrooms and sold or shared, and some of the requested images used images of real children. The CPS says he admitted making about 5,000 pounds over 18 months. He was arrested by Greater Manchester Police in June 2023. The BBC court report says the offences were uncovered when he spoke to an undercover officer. He also admitted encouraging the rape of children under 13 in chatrooms.

AI system
Unidentified image tool
Occurred
Event date unknown
Reported
28 October 2024
Event location
Unknown
What the AI did
Depicted or impersonated the person
Reported harm
Exploitation or Abuse
Whose AI use
Someone else’s AI use
Setting
Privacy · Justice
Evidence
AI involvement reported · Causal attribution supported · 2 sources
5 claims: 5 reported. 3 open questions
People reported harmed
Not reliably quantifiable from the sources

AI system as recorded: A computer programme and AI technology that, according to the CPS, the man used to alter photographs of real children into sexual abuse images (tool not named in the sources read)

What Happened

The prosecution account. The Crown Prosecution Service announced on 28 October 2024 that a man had been sentenced at Bolton Crown Court to 18 years' imprisonment with an additional six years on extended licence. It says he used a computer programme and AI technology to alter photographs of real children to create sexual abuse images. According to the CPS, the police investigation found that he frequented encrypted chatrooms where he exchanged and sold computer-generated images, accepted requests to create explicit images of children being harmed, and that some of the requested images used images of real children. The CPS says he admitted making around 5,000 pounds over 18 months.

The investigation and pleas. Greater Manchester Police arrested him in June 2023 and examined his devices. He pleaded guilty to distribution charges at magistrates' court on 3 July 2023 and to further charges, including three counts of encouraging the rape of a child under 13, at Bolton Crown Court on 9 August 2024 (CPS). The BBC's court report says the offences came to light when he spoke to an undercover officer, and that the prosecutor told the court he said he had over 60 characters.

The harm. The CPS specialist prosecutor said real children are victimised through the creation of such content, and the Internet Watch Foundation, quoted in the release, said the crimes prolong the suffering of victims whose likenesses are abused.

What is not known. The sources read do not name the AI tool, say how many real children were depicted, or identify them.

Reported harm

According to the CPS, a man used AI technology to alter photographs of real children into sexual abuse images that he made to order and sold or shared in chatrooms; prosecutors say real children are victimised through such content.

Outcome

Resolved

He pleaded guilty to 16 child sexual abuse offences, including making and distributing indecent images of children and three counts of encouraging the rape of a child under 13, and was sentenced at Bolton Crown Court on 28 October 2024 to 18 years' imprisonment with an additional six years on extended licence (CPS; the BBC court report lists making, possessing and distributing counts and gives the sentence as 18 years including six on licence).

What remains unknown

  • Which AI tool and computer programme were used.
  • How many real children were depicted and whether any were identified or informed.
  • When the 18-month period of selling began; the sources date only the June 2023 arrest and the 2023 and 2024 pleas.

What the evidence supports

AI involvement: reported. The Crown Prosecution Service, which brought the case after police examined his seized devices, says the man used a computer programme and AI technology to alter photographs of real children into sexual abuse images that he made to order and sold or shared; the BBC court report of the sentencing gives the same account. The AI-altered depictions of real children are the abuse material at the centre of the offences. The tool is not named in the sources read.

5 claims: 5 reported. What the statuses mean

Reported The CPS says the man used a computer programme and AI technology to alter photographs of real children to create sexual abuse images.

Causal attribution. The prosecuting authority, which examined the evidence from his seized devices, attributes the images to AI technology; the BBC court report repeats it, partly quoting the CPS, so it is one prosecution origin. The tool is not named.

  • cps.gov.uk(opens in new tab) supports · English
    used a computer programme and AI technology to alter photographs of real children to create sexual abuse images
  • bbc.com(opens in new tab) supports · English
    A student who used AI technology "in the worst possible way" to turn photographs of real children into "depraved" indecent images has been jailed for 18 years.
Reported According to the CPS, he accepted requests in encrypted chatrooms to create explicit images of children being harmed, sold or shared them, and some of the requested images used images of real children; he admitted making around 5,000 pounds over 18 months.

Causal attribution. Prosecution account of how the AI-altered images were commissioned and distributed.

  • cps.gov.uk(opens in new tab) supports · English
    accepted requests from individuals who wanted him to create explicit images depicting children being harmed both sexually and physically, which he either sold in exchange for money or shared to others for free. Some of these computer-generated images requested used images of real children.
  • bbc.com(opens in new tab) supports · English
    The court heard he took requests from people who wanted him to create explicit images of children being harmed both sexually and physically.
Reported He pleaded guilty to 16 child sexual abuse offences, including three counts of encouraging the rape of a child under 13, and on 28 October 2024 was sentenced at Bolton Crown Court to 18 years' imprisonment with an additional six years on extended licence.

Causal attribution. Court outcome; the encouragement offences concern chatroom messages, not the AI images.

  • cps.gov.uk(opens in new tab) supports · English
    previously pleading guilty to a total of 16 charges relating to child sexual abuse offences. ... On 28 October 2024, he was sentenced to 18 years' imprisonment with an additional 6 years on extended licence.
  • bbc.com(opens in new tab) supports · English
    who pleaded guilty to 16 child sexual abuse offences, also encouraged the rape of children in online chatrooms.
Reported The CPS prosecutor said real children are victimised through the creation of such content.

Causal attribution. Prosecutor's statement of harm; no individual child's experience is described.

  • cps.gov.uk(opens in new tab) supports · English
    The misuse of emerging technology to create this material is a serious crime which can have a real impact on victims. Real children are being victimised through the creation of this content.
Reported Greater Manchester Police arrested him in June 2023 and examined his devices; the BBC court report says the offences were uncovered when he spoke to an undercover officer.

Causal attribution. Investigation chronology; the BBC's 'May last year' (2023) is the court report's wording.

  • cps.gov.uk(opens in new tab) supports · English
    after he was first arrested in June 2023 by Greater Manchester Police, and a number of his digital devices were seized and examined.
  • bbc.com(opens in new tab) supports · English
    His offences were uncovered when he began speaking to an undercover police officer in May last year.

Sources

2 sources inspected. Sources that repeat one account do not corroborate each other.

How the sources were read, and where the events happened

Read in English by the research agent (an AI) on 2026-10-20; HTTP 200. Crown Prosecution Service press release of 28 October 2024; no translation needed. Applies to s1.

Read in English by the research agent (an AI) on 2026-10-20; HTTP 200. BBC court report of the sentencing hearing, quoting the judge, the prosecutor, the police and the CPS. Applies to s2.

Event countries: Unknown. Affected-person countries: Unknown. Court countries: United Kingdom.

The case was investigated by Greater Manchester Police and sentenced at Bolton Crown Court, United Kingdom (GB). The images were made and traded online and the BBC says some requests came from abroad; the sources do not say where the depicted children live or where the images were made, so no event or affected-person country is recorded.

Reviewed for publication 2026-10-20: Published as a core case (depicted_or_impersonated): the Crown Prosecution Service says the man used AI technology to alter photographs of real children into sexual abuse images he made to order and sold, and the BBC court report gives the same account of the 2024 sentencing. No child is identified; the defendant is not named in the record.

People described

Real children whose photographs, according to the prosecution, were altered with AI technology into sexual abuse images made to order and sold or shared online

People reported harmed in this case

Not reliably quantifiable from the sources

No count: the CPS says some requested images used images of real children but gives no number of children depicted. The '60 characters' in the BBC court report are characters he described, not a count of real children.

Counted once within this case. The same person may appear in other cases. This count does not establish AI causation.

Tags

#ai_altered_images#child_sexual_abuse_material#images_made_to_order#guilty_plea#united_kingdom

Cite this case

Compiled per our published methodology: verification statuses, sourcing standards, and corrections process.

APA

NOPE. (2026). UK prosecutors say a Greater Manchester man used AI tools to turn photos of real children into sexual abuse images he sold to order; jailed for 18 years in 2024. AI incidents. https://nope.net/incidents/2023-greater-manchester-prosecutors-say-man-used-ai-to-turn-photos-of-real-children-into-abuse-images-sold-to-order-jailed

BibTeX

@misc{2023_greater_manchester_prosecutors_say_man_used_ai_to_turn_photos_of_real_children_into_abuse_images_sold_to_order_jailed,
  title = {UK prosecutors say a Greater Manchester man used AI tools to turn photos of real children into sexual abuse images he sold to order; jailed for 18 years in 2024},
  author = {NOPE},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {AI incidents},
  url = {https://nope.net/incidents/2023-greater-manchester-prosecutors-say-man-used-ai-to-turn-photos-of-real-children-into-abuse-images-sold-to-order-jailed}
}

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