2 Edmonton Teens Charged After AI-Generated Explicit Images of Classmates Surface

A person uses a cellphone in Ottawa on July 18, 2022. The Canadian Press/Sean Kilpatrick

Two 14-year-old boys from Edmonton have been charged in connection with the distribution of AI-created sexualized images of several female classmates.

Investigators with the Alberta Law Enforcement Response Team’s Internet Child Exploitation (ICE) unit said a teacher at an Edmonton junior high school reported the allegations to the police in late March following complaints by female students.

“There was discussion throughout the school that these existed and those concerns were brought forward to teachers,” Staff Sgt. Alison Church, with the joint police agency, said at a June 17 press conference.

Photos of multiple girls were taken without their permission, Church said. These images, along with others sourced from social media, were then used to generate exploitative images with AI technology.

Forensic examination of the evidence is still in progress, but the potential number of victims may reach into the “double digits,” Church said.

Investigators allege the pictures were shared between the suspects on their cellphones, but Church noted that the news of the images’ existence eventually spread throughout the school.

Police declined to disclose the name of the school to protect the victims’ identities.

The accused can’t be named under the Youth Criminal Justice act. The two teens have been charged with making and possessing child sexual exploitation materials and voyeurism.

ICE Const. Stephanie Bosch told reporters she and her team are determining which software was used to generate the images.

“There is a misconception that because it’s AI, it’s not real, that the impact is not significant,” Bosch said, noting that the incident has left the affected girls with feelings of shame and embarrassment. “These are very convincing images, and that’s why the impact on victims is so significant. Think about how that would impact a teenager, especially considering that it impacts how their peers may view them.”

Second Case Involving Teens

This case marks the second school-related ICE investigation concerning the use of AI in connection with child sexual exploitation materials.

A Calgary high school student was charged in December 2025 with sexualizing photos of numerous girls who attended high schools in the Calgary area.

The 17-year-old was charged with making, possessing, and distributing child sexual abuse and exploitation materials and criminal harassment after police executed a search warrant at a city home last November. Officers seized two cell phones, a tablet, and a laptop as part of the investigation.

Church said advancements in technology and artificial intelligence make it increasingly easy to create sexually exploitative images.

“Sadly, this is a reality of the challenges that youth, parents and police are facing with advancements in technology,” Church said, but noted that police have zero tolerance for such behaviour, even if the perpetrators are minors.

She said young people need to realize creating sexual images of minors is a serious crime.

Young victims often hesitate to come forward in sexual exploitation situations because of feelings of shame or fear, Church said. But she said she believes the details of this case could encourage other victims to come forward both now and in the future as the use of AI to alter photos becomes more common.

“Anecdotally, we are hearing about this starting to happen in the schools,” she said. “I think we are the tip of the iceberg with investigations that involve artificial intelligence.”