(WWJ) — A Clio man is facing charges for what Genesee County Sheriff Chris Swanson says is the Genesee Human Oppression Strike Team’s first case of AI-generated child pornography.
Trevor Klinert, 25, has been charged with four counts each of aggravated child sexually abusive activity and using a computer to commit a crime. He is being held at the Genesee County Jail on a $300,000 cash bond.
Klinert allegedly took a child’s photo he found on social media and ran it through 112 different AI generators and turned it into explicit, illegal child porn, according to Swanson.
"It's shocking to parents that somebody could have a photo that was posted innocently, and a predator can give it to an A.I., in this case 112 websites –112 A.I. generating websites– to filter what he felt was the best way to present his victim, fantasized," Swanson said in a video posted to the sheriff’s office Facebook page on Wednesday.
Genesee County Sgt. Jim Duhart said the case began as a sextortion investigation and after getting consent to search Klinert’s phone, he found the child pornography.
Officials said Klinert threatened to use the child porn against someone, though officials did not release any further information, including the child’s age or if he knew them.
Klinert was previously convicted in 2017 of using a computer to commit a crime and served a prison sentence, according to records from the Michigan Department of Corrections.
"A.I. is here, and it's here to stay, and these types of cases are not gonna end," Swanson said, noting the GHOST unit will continue to evolve as technology does.
Swanson, Duhart and Sgt. Tory Dallas said the first-of-its-kind case in the county should serve as a warning for parents to think twice about what they post to social media.
"Technology is going to change, but the commitment to protect our children and those vulnerable – that is not going to change," Dallas said. "Take inventory of your social media. Predators like these, they're hungry. They're hungry for images. Stop feeding them."