“thegentlemanpervert” producing AI CSAM is a NJ prosecutor, say cops

New Jersey’s deputy attorney general, Brian Richard Fitzgerald, was arrested at his home on felony charges related to artificial intelligence-generated child sexual abuse material. Bucks County Detectives announced the arrest in a press release on Thursday. According to officials, the 51-year-old prosecutor used AI tools to convert social media photos of real minors into sexualized images and distributed them online.

Investigators stated the case began in July after the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children received a tip about a Discord user sharing an illicit image. Digital forensics, subscriber records, and Internet protocol addresses ultimately traced the account to Fitzgerald’s home. During a search, authorities recovered AI prompts, scripts, and Discord chat logs where the user—operating under the handle "thegentlemanpervert"—admitted to making and sharing illicit artificial intelligence images.

Fitzgerald faces multiple charges, including possession of child sexual abuse material, dissemination of such images or film, and criminal use of a communication facility. State prosecutor Joe Khan stated that New Jersey aligns with the Department of Justice in treating AI-generated abuse material as severely as traditional abuse material.

Fitzgerald had served as a deputy attorney general in the state’s top legal office since 2016, preparing insurance fraud cases for trial.