Vile paedophile who used AI to sell indecent images of real children jailed for 18 years in UK first

A depraved paedophile who used AI to create computer generated indecent images of real children has been jailed today in a 'landmark' case.

Hugh Nelson, from Bolton, took 'commissions' from relatives and family friends of children as young as four, charging them £80 to turn a real, legitimate image of a child into a 3D modelling 'character' using AI face transfer. This 'character' could then be posed and adapted however they wished.

In a sentencing on Monday (October 28) at Bolton Crown Court, Nelson was jailed for 18 years, plus six years on licence, after previously pleading guilty to 11 offences.

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Appearing over video link from HMP Forest Bank, Nelson kept a blank face as his sentence was handed down.

Prosecuting in a previous appearance on Wednesday (October 25), David Toal said Nelson began speaking to a law enforcement officer called 'Chris' over a site called Matrix, where the defendant was using the handle 'SweetDemons'. The two began to talk online after Chris messaged Nelson asking what kind of content he created.

Nelson said he used DAZ 3D and proceeded to send Chris images he created, including several depicting children believed to be aged between eight and ten. He told Chris he had around 60 models in total, with ages ranging from six months to middle aged.

“I’ve done beatings, smotherings, hangings, drownings, beheadings, necro, bestiality - I charge £80 to create a new character,” he told Chris. He later asked Chris if he had any children he wanted to send in pictures of, adding: "Creating 3D loli porn could get me jailed".

Nelson was arrested in June 2023 and his devices seized. Officers traced victims of his online offending to Italy, France, and the USA. In one case, a victim

Across eight chats, officers found 56 category A images - the most serious kind, involving penetrative sexual activity, sexual activity with an animal or sadism; 16 category B images involving non-penetrative sexual activity; and 47 category C images, which are other indecent images not falling into categories A or B. All these images were distributed by or to Nelson.

He was also found to have created 864 category A images, 440 category B images, and 503 category C images, and had 1,391 prohibited images in his possession.

On August 9 this year he pleaded guilty to 11 offences; three counts of encouraging the rape of a child under 13, one count of attempting to incite a boy under 16 to engage in a sexual act, three counts each of the distribution and making of indecent images, and one count of possessing prohibited images.

Defending, Robert Elias described Nelson as a 'shy' 'gauche' man who had 'limited experience' of real relationships, adding Covid had 'a lot to do' with his offences.

"In his lonely bedroom life in his home he was encouraged to go on to create images," he said. "What he was seeking was a sense of validation, a sense of belonging in this community."

He added despite Nelson's there was 'no evidence' any child had suffered physical abuse in connection with them, calling his offences a 'fantasy'.

“What he was seeking primarily was validation, congratulations and a sense of belonging in a community. He was earning relatively small amounts of money and desperately wanted validation," he said.

“He plunged down the rabbit hole to this sort of fantasy life and became completely engrossed in it. He has brought his life crashing down around him to the shock and horror of his immediate family.”

Passing sentence, Recorder Walsh said: "These harrowing and sickening images were forwarded by you for financial gain. So far as you were concerned the undercover officer was just another anonymous customer. You had no regard to or concern for the potential consequences of the distribution of the images that you had created.

"You told the undercover officer that 'most of the people who commission me don't/can't f*** their nieces, daughters etc so the way I see it is I provide a valulable service.'"

He said it was 'impossible to know' whether a child was raped of sexually abused as a result of Nelson's encouragement, adding he was 'not to be sentenced on the basis that an act or acts of rape did in fact take place'.

"However, you had no idea of the true identity of those with whom you were communicating or as to what might in fact happen as a result of the encouragement that you were giving," he continued. "You had no idea how far and wide the images that you created would be distributed by others and to what purpose they would be put.

"It is, it should be stressed, implicit in your pleas that you intended to encourage or to offer assistance to those with whom you were communicating with to engage in the rape of a child."

He said he was satisfied Nelson posed a 'significant risk of harm to the public'. Nelson, of Briggsfold Road, was sentenced to 18 years imprisonment, with six years on extended licence. He was also handed a number of smaller sentences to run concurrently to the 18 years.