Long Island Man Faces Felony Charges For Posting 'Deepfake' Images Of Former Classmates On Porn Site
MINEOLA, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- A Long Island man faces felony charges for posting fake, sexually-explicit photos on a porn site.
Prosecutors said Patrick Carey faked images to make them look like his former underage classmates were engaged in sex acts and shared them online, CBS2's Carolyn Gusoff reported Thursday.
The 20-year-old store clerk was on a depraved campaign to harass former classmates, prosecutors said
Carey is accused of "deepfaking" their social media posts - superimposing nude bodies to make it like girls as young as 14 were engaging in sex acts.
"It's horrible and it's affected these girls like you can't even imagine. These are good girls, they're in college. It's just horrible what this animal has done," said the mother of one victim.
Victims and their parents were in court as the indictment was detailed.
Carey purportedly created 14 usernames, uploaded 1,200 posts to a porn website that features images without the subjects' permission, then allegedly shared victims' names, phone numbers and addresses, including maps.
Prosecutors said Carey encouraged site users to harass and threaten the girls.
"They received very sexually explicit voicemails or private messages from strangers," said Nassau Assistant District Attorney Melissa Scannell.
Scannell said Carey was not paid. His motive is unknown.
"It was them at cheerleading, it was them smiling at the beach. They were just living their lives and had their images taken and modified and shared to strangers, to solicit rape fantasies," Scannell said.
Carey is a 2019 graduate of MacArthur High School in Levittown. The school superintendent called the allegations extremely disturbing.
The statement from Superintendent Dr. Tonie McDonald said, "Earlier today, the district was notified of the indictment of a former General Douglas MacArthur High School student, who graduated in 2019. These allegations are serious and extremely disturbing. The district will assist the Nassau County Police Department and the Nassau County District Attorney's Office in their investigations as needed. As this matter is being handled by law enforcement agencies, any questions should be directed to them."
Carey lives with his parents in Seaford and is seeking treatment, according to his attorney.
Prosecutors said some of the victims first found out about the posts because some social media platforms notify users of screengrabs, and they praised the victims as unsung heroes.
"They were getting these filthy images. They were getting these filthy messages and they took it upon themselves to figure out where they were coming from and to reach out to the police," said Scannell.
Eleven victims came forward. Prosecutors said there could be as many as 50. They're urging anyone who suspects they are among them to contact the Nassau DA at 516-571-2553.
Carey was ordered to be electronically monitored if he makes bail. The DA is also trying to get the illegally posted images removed from the pornographic website.