Ohio Man Is First to Be Federally Convicted for AI-Generated Porn Deepfakes

09/04/2026

Ohio Man Is First to Be Federally Convicted for AI-Generated Porn Deepfakes

OHIO, Apr 9: An Ohio man has been convicted for using artificial intelligence to create and distribute sexually explicit deepfake images of women, marking what prosecutors say is one of the first convictions under a new federal law targeting nonconsensual AI-generated imagery.

James Strahler II, 37, was found guilty on Tuesday after pleading to charges including cyberstalking, producing obscene visual representations of child sexual abuse, and distributing digital forgeries, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Columbus.

Prosecutors said Strahler used artificial intelligence tools to generate explicit content involving at least six adult women and then distributed the material to their coworkers in an effort to harass and intimidate them. He also allegedly carried out repeated harassment through phone calls, messages, and online posts.

Between December 2024 and June 2025, investigators said he used more than two dozen AI platforms and multiple web-based models to produce deepfake pornography. Authorities also said he created illegal explicit material involving minors and uploaded hundreds of such images to a site dedicated to child sexual abuse content.

U.S. Attorney Dominick S. Gerace II said the case is believed to be the first conviction under the 2025 law known as the “Take It Down Act,” which criminalizes nonconsensual sharing of intimate images and AI-generated deepfakes.

First Lady Melania Trump praised the conviction, calling it a landmark case that strengthens protections against emerging cybercrimes in the digital age.

Strahler was initially arrested in 2025 on federal charges and is scheduled to be sentenced at a later date.