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Japanese police arrested a 31-year-old man from Sapporo, Hokkaido, in January 2026 on suspicion of displaying obscene electronic images online. Investigators reportedly believe he used generative AI to create more than 500,000 sexually explicit images resembling about 300 female celebrities, promoted them through a members-only website and accepted paid requests for specific people.
The alleged operation generated approximately ¥11 million. The arrest was reportedly pursued under Japan’s existing obscenity laws—not under a single, dedicated criminal offense called “AI deepfake pornography.”
What police allege
Reports identified the suspect by the surname Chiba. English-language coverage has used both “Tetsuro Chiba” and “Tatsuro Chiba,” so the given name should be treated cautiously until confirmed against a Japanese police or prosecutorial record.
According to police information reported by Tokyo Reporter and the South China Morning Post, investigators allege that Chiba:
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- began using a generative-AI tool around summer 2023;
- used images of approximately 300 people, including female idols, as source material;
- created more than 500,000 sexually explicit images resembling those people;
- made the material available online between December 2024 and May 2025;
- offered paid access to image packages, reportedly containing 14 files; and
- created additional images on request for customers willing to pay more.
Reports say police believe the activity produced roughly ¥11 million in proceeds—about US$70,000 at the exchange rate used in coverage. The suspect reportedly told investigators that he spent the money on travel, entertainment or following celebrities.
He has been arrested on suspicion of displaying obscene electronic images. An arrest is an allegation, not a conviction, and the available reports do not establish whether prosecutors have filed an indictment or what final charges may follow.
Why “selling 500,000 images” is not quite precise
The headline figure should not be read as proof that the suspect individually sold 500,000 files or that every image was purchased or viewed.
One report described more than 500,000 images, while another gave an estimate of approximately 520,000. Those figures were attributed to police sources or media reporting; no publicly available indictment or forensic inventory establishes the exact total.
The evidence described publicly supports a more careful summary: investigators believe he created a very large number of images and sold access to packages and custom requests. Creation, online display, paid access, individual sales, customer views and commissioned images are different things.
What “deepfake” means here
In this context, a deepfake is fabricated sexual content that uses a real person’s likeness or publicly available photographs to make it appear that the person is nude or involved in a sexual act. The underlying event did not happen simply because an image appears realistic.
That distinction does not eliminate the harm. A synthetic image can falsely associate an identifiable person with sexual conduct, damage their reputation, invade their privacy and spread beyond the creator’s control.
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What law was reportedly used?
The reported arrest allegation concerns the display or distribution of obscene electronic images under Japan’s existing legal framework. Japan’s Penal Code includes provisions dealing with the distribution or public display of obscene materials, including electronic records transmitted through telecommunications. The Ministry of Justice provides background on those provisions.
The precise charging provision and procedural status should be confirmed from official Japanese police or prosecutorial records. The public reports do not support saying that “AI generation itself” was the crime.
Japan’s government has said that illegal AI-generated sexual material can be addressed under existing laws, with the analysis depending on the facts. In an April 2025 statement, the Cabinet Office said relevant provisions may include the Penal Code and child-pornography legislation where applicable, rather than describing every AI-generated sexual image as automatically covered by one new deepfake statute. (Cabinet Office)
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The government’s case-by-case position matters. Different conduct can raise different legal questions:
- Public display or distribution: may raise obscenity concerns.
- Use of an identifiable person’s likeness: may implicate privacy, portrait or publicity rights.
- False claims about a person: may create defamation or harassment issues.
- Commercial exploitation: can add evidence of distribution, intent or financial benefit.
- Images involving minors: may trigger much more serious child-protection laws, even where the material is synthetic.
A private act of creating an image, publishing it publicly, selling access, commissioning it and hosting or promoting it are not necessarily treated identically. The facts, the people depicted and the way the material was distributed all matter.
This is not automatically a revenge-porn case
Japan’s rules on private sexual-image records address the disclosure of certain genuine private sexual images. The National Police Agency says public disclosure can carry a penalty of up to three years’ imprisonment or a fine of up to ¥500,000, while supplying material for that purpose can carry up to one year’s imprisonment or a fine of up to ¥300,000.
Those rules should not automatically be used as a label for this case. The reports describe AI-generated images, not confirmed disclosure of genuine private sexual material. “Revenge pornography,” “sexual deepfake” and “obscene electronic image” describe overlapping but legally distinct concepts.
Why the case matters beyond celebrities
The alleged operation illustrates how generative AI can make abusive sexual content scalable. A creator may repurpose ordinary photographs, produce large quantities of convincing fabrications and use familiar online tools—social-media promotion, subscriptions and paid requests—to distribute them commercially.
Celebrity status may make the alleged targets more visible, but the underlying risk is not limited to public figures. Ordinary adults can be targeted, and cases involving minors require especially urgent protection and must not be treated as interchangeable with adult cases.
Removal is also difficult once content has been copied. A platform may delete an original post while screenshots, downloads or reposts remain elsewhere. Japan’s government has separately warned about using image-generation and editing functions to create sexual images from other people’s photographs. (Cabinet Office)
What victims can do
Anyone targeted by a sexual deepfake should act quickly, while avoiding further distribution:
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- Do not download, forward or repost the material.
- Report it through the platform’s non-consensual intimate-image, impersonation or harassment process.
- Request removal from the platform, host or relevant provider.
- Contact police or an appropriate victim-support service.
- Consider legal advice about privacy, defamation, publicity rights and takedown requests.
If a minor may be depicted, treat the matter as urgent and do not forward the image to anyone. The National Police Agency warns that rapid online spread can make complete removal difficult, which is why evidence preservation and early reporting matter.
What remains unclear
- the suspect’s confirmed Japanese name and exact arrest date;
- the precise statutory charge;
- whether the reported total was closer to 500,000 or 520,000;
- how many customers viewed or purchased access;
- which AI tool or workflow was used;
- the identities and recognizability of the people depicted; and
- whether prosecutors will indict and pursue criminal or civil proceedings.
For now, the strongest supported conclusion is that Japanese police allege a Sapporo man used generative AI to produce and commercially distribute access to a huge volume of fabricated sexual images resembling celebrities. The case demonstrates that existing obscenity, privacy and related laws can be used against some AI-abuse operations, while also showing why the legal treatment of synthetic sexual imagery remains fact-specific.
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