{"id":44798,"topic":"ai","source":"WRAL","title":"Juvenile charged in Knightdale with using AI to create sexually explicit images of minors - WRAL","url":"https://www.wral.com/news/investigates/artificial-intelligence-sexual-exploitation-victims-charges-knightdale-july-23-2026/","url_hash":"5facbeda882f857231166f8f5e29b0a9bab4c646","author":"","summary":"Juvenile charged in Knightdale with using AI to create sexually explicit images of minors WRAL","content":"A teenager is accused of using artificial intelligence to create sexually explicit images of Wake County girls, Knightdale Police say.\nThe teen, whose name is not public because of his age, faces multiple charges of sexual exploitation of a minor. Knightdale police say a secured custody order for the young man was issued on June 18, 2026.\nOther WRAL Top Stories\nSeveral local parents reached out to WRAL, alleging their daughters were victims in connection with a juvenile criminal investigation. The parents said their daughters learned over the summer that their photos had allegedly been mainpulated with artificial intelligence to depict them in a sexually explicit manner.\nParents say non-explict photos were taken from various sources, including social media, and changed using AI. It is currently unclear from the investigation how many girls may be victims of having their photos manipulated.\n\"This remains an active and ongoing investigation. In accordance with North Carolina law, no additional information regarding the identities of those involved or other details of the investigation will be released, as the case involves juvenile victims and a juvenile offender,\" a Knightdale spokesperson said.\n\"The Knightdale Police Department remains committed to protecting children, thoroughly investigating crimes, and holding offenders accountable under the law.\"\nA Wake County parent, who asked to remain anonymous, said her daughter's photo had been manipulated by the suspect, but not in a way that resulted in a criminal charge.\n“It’s terrible because you try to shield your kids from the world as best as possible,” she said.\nThat parent is aware of the criminal investigation involving photos of other girls.\n“I’ll just say ... this is a traumatizing experience for the girls ... It will create issues moving forward. Many have said ‘How do we know the person beside us hasn’t seen these pictures,'\" she said.\nThat parent and others connected to the investigation told WRAL that the female victims were students in the Wake County Public School System.\nWRAL News asked the district:\n- Has communication been sent to parents?\n- What safeguards are in place to protect the students involved?\n- Is the suspect a Wake County student?\nA spokesperson for the school district said they do not have a student enrolled by the name of the suspect that the parents provided to WRAL, but he declined to answer the other questions.\nThe North Carolina law that defines child pornography as a crime does not distinguish between real photos and those that are created with artificial intelligence. Friday on WRAL News, we examine the current law and explain the complications that AI adds in an investigation like this one.","image_url":"https://images.wral.com/7d840c56-513f-4335-b9bf-d6cd81a2bf80?w=1200&h=630&height=630","lang":"en","published_at":"2026-07-23T20:50:14+00:00","fetched_at":"2026-07-23T21:15:04+00:00","status":"read","starred":0,"extract_state":"ok","summary_auto":"A teenager is accused of using artificial intelligence to create sexually explicit images of Wake County girls, Knightdale Police say. 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Knightdale police say a secured custody order for the young man was issued on June 18, 2026.\nOther WRAL Top Stories\nSeveral local parents reached out to WRAL, alleging their daughters were victims in connection with a juvenile criminal investigation. The parents said their daughters learned over the summer that their photos had allegedly been mainpulated with artificial intelligence to depict them in a sexually explicit manner.\nParents say non-explict photos were taken from various sources, including social media, and changed using AI. It is currently unclear from the investigation how many girls may be victims of having their photos manipulated.\n\"This remains an active and ongoing investigation. In accordance with North Carolina law, no additional information regarding the identities of those involved or other details of the investigation will be released, as the case involves juvenile victims and a juvenile offender,\" a Knightdale spokesperson said.\n\"The Knightdale Police Department remains committed to protecting children, thoroughly investigating crimes, and holding offenders accountable under the law.\"\nA Wake County parent, who asked to remain anonymous, said her daughter's photo had been manipulated by the suspect, but not in a way that resulted in a criminal charge.\n“It’s terrible because you try to shield your kids from the world as best as possible,” she said.\nThat parent is aware of the criminal investigation involving photos of other girls.\n“I’ll just say ... this is a traumatizing experience for the girls ... It will create issues moving forward. Many have said ‘How do we know the person beside us hasn’t seen these pictures,'\" she said.\nThat parent and others connected to the investigation told WRAL that the female victims were students in the Wake County Public School System.\nWRAL News asked the district:\n- Has communication been sent to parents?\n- What safeguards are in place to protect the students involved?\n- Is the suspect a Wake County student?\nA spokesperson for the school district said they do not have a student enrolled by the name of the suspect that the parents provided to WRAL, but he declined to answer the other questions.\nThe North Carolina law that defines child pornography as a crime does not distinguish between real photos and those that are created with artificial intelligence. Friday on WRAL News, we examine the current law and explain the complications that AI adds in an investigation like this one.","excerpt":"A teenager is accused of using artificial intelligence to create sexually explicit images of Wake County girls, Knightdale Police say. 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The teen, whose name is not public because of his age, faces multiple charges of sexual exploitation of a minor.","source":"WRAL","date":"2026-07-23T20:50:14+00:00","content":"A teenager is accused of using artificial intelligence to create sexually explicit images of Wake County girls, Knightdale Police say.\nThe teen, whose name is not public because of his age, faces multiple charges of sexual exploitation of a minor. Knightdale police say a secured custody order for the young man was issued on June 18, 2026.\nOther WRAL Top Stories\nSeveral local parents reached out to WRAL, alleging their daughters were victims in connection with a juvenile criminal investigation. The parents said their daughters learned over the summer that their photos had allegedly been mainpulated with artificial intelligence to depict them in a sexually explicit manner.\nParents say non-explict photos were taken from various sources, including social media, and changed using AI. It is currently unclear from the investigation how many girls may be victims of having their photos manipulated.\n\"This remains an active and ongoing investigation. In accordance with North Carolina law, no additional information regarding the identities of those involved or other details of the investigation will be released, as the case involves juvenile victims and a juvenile offender,\" a Knightdale spokesperson said.\n\"The Knightdale Police Department remains committed to protecting children, thoroughly investigating crimes, and holding offenders accountable under the law.\"\nA Wake County parent, who asked to remain anonymous, said her daughter's photo had been manipulated by the suspect, but not in a way that resulted in a criminal charge.\n“It’s terrible because you try to shield your kids from the world as best as possible,” she said.\nThat parent is aware of the criminal investigation involving photos of other girls.\n“I’ll just say ... this is a traumatizing experience for the girls ... It will create issues moving forward. Many have said ‘How do we know the person beside us hasn’t seen these pictures,'\" she said.\nThat parent and others connected to the investigation told WRAL that the female victims were students in the Wake County Public School System.\nWRAL News asked the district:\n- Has communication been sent to parents?\n- What safeguards are in place to protect the students involved?\n- Is the suspect a Wake County student?\nA spokesperson for the school district said they do not have a student enrolled by the name of the suspect that the parents provided to WRAL, but he declined to answer the other questions.\nThe North Carolina law that defines child pornography as a crime does not distinguish between real photos and those that are created with artificial intelligence. 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The teen, whose name is not public because of his age, faces multiple charges of sexual exploitation of a minor.","full_text":"A teenager is accused of using artificial intelligence to create sexually explicit images of Wake County girls, Knightdale Police say.\nThe teen, whose name is not public because of his age, faces multiple charges of sexual exploitation of a minor. Knightdale police say a secured custody order for the young man was issued on June 18, 2026.\nOther WRAL Top Stories\nSeveral local parents reached out to WRAL, alleging their daughters were victims in connection with a juvenile criminal investigation. The parents said their daughters learned over the summer that their photos had allegedly been mainpulated with artificial intelligence to depict them in a sexually explicit manner.\nParents say non-explict photos were taken from various sources, including social media, and changed using AI. It is currently unclear from the investigation how many girls may be victims of having their photos manipulated.\n\"This remains an active and ongoing investigation. In accordance with North Carolina law, no additional information regarding the identities of those involved or other details of the investigation will be released, as the case involves juvenile victims and a juvenile offender,\" a Knightdale spokesperson said.\n\"The Knightdale Police Department remains committed to protecting children, thoroughly investigating crimes, and holding offenders accountable under the law.\"\nA Wake County parent, who asked to remain anonymous, said her daughter's photo had been manipulated by the suspect, but not in a way that resulted in a criminal charge.\n“It’s terrible because you try to shield your kids from the world as best as possible,” she said.\nThat parent is aware of the criminal investigation involving photos of other girls.\n“I’ll just say ... this is a traumatizing experience for the girls ... It will create issues moving forward. Many have said ‘How do we know the person beside us hasn’t seen these pictures,'\" she said.\nThat parent and others connected to the investigation told WRAL that the female victims were students in the Wake County Public School System.\nWRAL News asked the district:\n- Has communication been sent to parents?\n- What safeguards are in place to protect the students involved?\n- Is the suspect a Wake County student?\nA spokesperson for the school district said they do not have a student enrolled by the name of the suspect that the parents provided to WRAL, but he declined to answer the other questions.\nThe North Carolina law that defines child pornography as a crime does not distinguish between real photos and those that are created with artificial intelligence. 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The teen, whose name is not public because of his age, faces multiple charges of sexual exploitation of a minor.","source":"WRAL","date":"2026-07-23T20:50:14+00:00","content":"A teenager is accused of using artificial intelligence to create sexually explicit images of Wake County girls, Knightdale Police say.\nThe teen, whose name is not public because of his age, faces multiple charges of sexual exploitation of a minor. Knightdale police say a secured custody order for the young man was issued on June 18, 2026.\nOther WRAL Top Stories\nSeveral local parents reached out to WRAL, alleging their daughters were victims in connection with a juvenile criminal investigation. The parents said their daughters learned over the summer that their photos had allegedly been mainpulated with artificial intelligence to depict them in a sexually explicit manner.\nParents say non-explict photos were taken from various sources, including social media, and changed using AI. It is currently unclear from the investigation how many girls may be victims of having their photos manipulated.\n\"This remains an active and ongoing investigation. In accordance with North Carolina law, no additional information regarding the identities of those involved or other details of the investigation will be released, as the case involves juvenile victims and a juvenile offender,\" a Knightdale spokesperson said.\n\"The Knightdale Police Department remains committed to protecting children, thoroughly investigating crimes, and holding offenders accountable under the law.\"\nA Wake County parent, who asked to remain anonymous, said her daughter's photo had been manipulated by the suspect, but not in a way that resulted in a criminal charge.\n“It’s terrible because you try to shield your kids from the world as best as possible,” she said.\nThat parent is aware of the criminal investigation involving photos of other girls.\n“I’ll just say ... this is a traumatizing experience for the girls ... It will create issues moving forward. Many have said ‘How do we know the person beside us hasn’t seen these pictures,'\" she said.\nThat parent and others connected to the investigation told WRAL that the female victims were students in the Wake County Public School System.\nWRAL News asked the district:\n- Has communication been sent to parents?\n- What safeguards are in place to protect the students involved?\n- Is the suspect a Wake County student?\nA spokesperson for the school district said they do not have a student enrolled by the name of the suspect that the parents provided to WRAL, but he declined to answer the other questions.\nThe North Carolina law that defines child pornography as a crime does not distinguish between real photos and those that are created with artificial intelligence. 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