Teachers traumatized by student's deepfake sex videos tell court about continued harm and suffering

Prosecutors sought at least two years of jail for a teenage boy who allegedly created sexual deepfakes of his schoolteachers — all of whom are battling with trauma in classrooms, they testified on Monday. 

The underage defendant was charged with producing and editing the fabricated images in violation of the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment of Sexual Crimes.

However, the Juvenile Act stipulates that courts hand down indeterminate sentences that set minimum and maximum prison terms for offenders who commit crimes before turning 19.

“Even though the defendant is a minor and turned himself in, he created deepfake images of teachers and distributed some of them to third parties,” prosecutors said in the final trial before the verdict, which was held at the Incheon District Court. The prosecutors asked the court to hand down a sentence between two years and three years and six months. 

The prosecutors added that “severe punishment is necessary as the damage inflicted cannot easily be reversed.”

The teenager allegedly used AI to add the facial images of the five schoolteachers onto nude photographs in August 2024, when he was a middle schooler. He also reportedly circulated the images through social media.

Three of the five victimized teachers appeared in the courtroom on Monday. 

“I used to love children more than anyone, but now I find myself doubting my students,” one teacher said. “Even after months of counseling, my heart still sinks at the sound of a camera shutter or whenever I hear the word ‘deepfake.’”

“For more than 30 years to come, I will have to continue teaching children while carrying this fear and distrust,” the teacher said. “Given the nature of digital sex crimes, this trauma will follow me for the rest of my life.”

Another teacher, who believed that their role was to guide students through life and tried to stay close with pupils, shed tears in the courtroom. “The values that I held as a teacher have collapsed, and goals in life have crumbled altogether,” the teacher said.

The teachers stressed that the defendant’s age should not be grounds for leniency because the content used in digital sex crimes can rarely be removed completely.

“I’m afraid even to take photos with students, and every time I stand in front of a classroom, I feel uncomfortable when students gaze at me,” one teacher said. “As someone who is barely holding on with the help of counseling and medication, I hope the court will not treat his age as a reason for leniency.”

The teenage suspect apologized in the courtroom.

“I’ve been reflecting on every action I take since the incident,” he said. “I am sorry.”

His attorney argued that the “crimes may have stemmed from impulsive sexual curiosity,” given the defendant’s age at the time.

“While being young does not justify his actions, we ask the court to consider that he is capable of correcting his behavior,” the attorney said.

During the investigation, law enforcement found out that the suspect deliberately committed his wrongdoing by inducing his homeroom teacher to send him photographs by falsely claiming that his photos and contacts had been erased during a phone reset. He later used the images to create deepfakes.

Although the teachers learned of the crimes in January, he had avoided disciplinary action by withdrawing from school before a teachers' rights committee convened.

The suspect is accused of creating deepfake videos and images on 35 occasions, which involved 11 victims in total, including five teachers.

BY HAN YOUNG-HYE   [[email protected]]