A 32-year-old Manchester man was sentenced to 18 years in federal prison after investigators found more than 22,000 files containing child sexual abuse material on two cellphones and two laptops belonging to him, including hundreds of images generated using artificial intelligence. U.S. District Judge Stephen R. Clark also ordered Michael A. Huseman to pay $23,000 in restitution to five identified victims.
According to KTTN, investigators discovered roughly 6,000 anime files depicting the sexual abuse of children and identified approximately 201 files depicting known child abuse victims among the trove on Huseman's devices. More than 400 of the files were generated using artificial intelligence, the outlet reports. Huseman pleaded guilty in June 2026 to one count of receiving child pornography.
Judge Clark also took note of Huseman's attempt to cover his tracks, saying the deleted communications were likely unfavorable to his case, per the outlet's report. Huseman had instructed someone to delete nearly 5,000 social media communications before he was taken into custody.
Federal Case Built on a Sealed Indictment
Court records list Huseman under case number 4:25-cr-00409 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri, according to PacerMonitor. The case record lists Huseman as the defendant. Project Safe Childhood is a Department of Justice initiative launched in May 2006 that coordinates federal, state, and local law enforcement resources to investigate child sexual exploitation and rescue victims, per the Department of Justice.
The case was investigated by the Manchester Police Department, the FBI, and the Regional Computer Crimes Education and Enforcement Group of Greater St. Louis, according to Hoodline's prior reporting. The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children's CyberTipline refers reports to law enforcement.
Familiar Prosecutor, Growing Caseload
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jillian Anderson prosecuted the case. Anderson regularly serves as the primary federal prosecutor handling Project Safe Childhood and child exploitation cases in the Eastern District of Missouri, having also prosecuted a similar federal case against Joshua J. Klenke this month. Anderson's continued presence in these prosecutions reflects the ongoing federal enforcement focus coming out of the district, which is handled out of St. Louis.
Hoodline has previously covered another case tied to Anderson's caseload, including a St. Charles man sentenced to 14 years. The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Missouri has offices in St. Louis and Cape Girardeau and serves more than half of Missouri's population.
Missouri Law Now Calls It Child Sexual Abuse Material
Effective August 28, 2026, Missouri House Bill 2273 amended Chapter 573 to use the term child sexual abuse material in some provisions, according to BillTrack50. The bill also amended provisions concerning computer crimes and training requirements. Under Missouri Revised Statutes § 573.037, possession of child sexual abuse material is addressed in the statute. The available provision does not specify separate punishment for each item possessed.
Separately, Missouri Revised Statutes § 573.038 is cited in the bill.
AI-Generated Material a Growing National Concern
The hundreds of AI-generated files found on Huseman's devices reflect a broader trend law enforcement agencies are tracking nationwide. The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children received 4,700 CyberTipline reports involving generative AI child sexual abuse material in 2023, the first year it began tracking AI-generated imagery, according to The Guardian. Overall online child sexual exploitation reports surpassed 36.2 million that year.
In Arkansas, the supplied sources do not provide details about a prosecution involving AI-generated images. Federal prosecutors in eastern Missouri have brought several recent CSAM cases, including a Wentzville firefighter sentenced to 22 years and called a danger to the community.
