A Lower Makefield man is accused of using artificial intelligence to create child pornography that he then distributed through an online group chat platform.
Bucks County Detectives opened the investigation following a cybertip earlier this year from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children that a county resident shared a sexually explicit image of a child on July 11, 2026 on the Discord app.
Authorities subsequently identified the user who allegedly sent the image as Brian Fitzgerald, 51, who allegedly sent the images on Discord under the username “TheGentlemanPervert,” according to a probable cause affidavit.
Fitzgerald allegedly shared
nine sexually explicit images of minors he said he made using AI on Discord and when he was asked by a user if he made the images, he responded that he made all but one of them, the affidavit said.
Investigators reviewed eight other images that Fitzgerald allegedly sent on Discord that showed nude teenage girls engaged in sexual acts, which appeared to be created using AI or a computer program, the affidavit said.
During the Oct. 15 execution of a search warrant at Fitzgerald’s home he allegedly admitted to making child pornography using a specific website, and obtaining child pornography using another application and sharing the files on Discord.
After Discord deactivated his account, Fitzgerald alleged he deleted all the child pornography materials and conversation threads.
Fitzgerald was arraigned Thursday before District Judge Corryn Kronnagel on three felony charges including dissemination of child sexual abuse material.
He was transferred to Bucks County Correctional Center in lieu of $2 million bail, and had no legal representation listed as of Thursday, according to the public court docket.
Crime and Courts Reporter Jo Ciavaglia can be reached at jciavaglia@gannett.com
This article originally appeared on Bucks County Courier Times: Lower Makefield man accused of using AI to create child porn
