Justin Ryan Culmo, a 40-year-old resident of Oldsmar, has entered a guilty plea to multiple charges related to the production and distribution of child sexual abuse material. The charges include three counts of producing child sexual abuse material, one count of distributing such material, one count of possession, and an additional count for producing modified depictions using artificial intelligence. Culmo is facing a possible life sentence in federal prison, although his sentencing date has yet to be determined.
Court documents reveal that Culmo was involved in creating explicit imagery involving very young children and utilized generative AI technology to produce thousands more images. Authorities found him in possession of approximately 85,000 images and 845 videos depicting child sexual abuse. He also had 8,500 AI-generated images related to the same offenses.
The investigation was conducted by Homeland Security Investigations, with Assistant United States Attorney Abigail K. King leading the prosecution efforts.
This case falls under Project Safe Childhood, an initiative launched by the Department of Justice in May 2006. The project aims to address child sexual exploitation and abuse through coordinated efforts at various governmental levels. It focuses on locating offenders who exploit children and rescuing victims from such crimes. More information about this initiative can be found at www.justice.gov/psc.