NC State alum charged with making, sharing AI porn of dozens of sorority women
![The women’s faces were “artificially imposed on [nude] women performing sex acts,” according to search warrants.](https://www.newsobserver.com/public/latest-news/womm27/picture300143609/alternates/LANDSCAPE_1200/nc%20state%20police.jpg "The women’s faces were “artificially imposed on [nude] women performing sex acts,” according to search warrants.")
A recent N.C. State University graduate has been accused of manufacturing and sharing computer-generated porn of dozens of sorority women, court documents show.
Hayne Jefferson Beard, 23, of Philadelphia is charged with two counts of misdemeanor stalking for offenses dating back to Aug. 11, according to his arrest warrant.
Investigators were alerted to the issue Oct. 21, when a student reported sexual photographs of her and other women had been posted on a porn-sharing website, according to search warrants first reported by WRAL. The News & Observer is choosing not to name the website to protect the privacy of the women.
At least 28 women were targeted, search warrants state. In many of the photos, the women’s faces were “artificially imposed on [nude] women performing sex acts,” and the victims’ names were included in the titles of the photo albums, according to search warrants.
It’s not clear when the photos began appearing online, but detectives requested data for a Gmail account associated with the porn site profile spanning from Jan. 1, 2024, to Oct. 31, 2024, according to search warrants.
An N.C. State Police Department spokesperson shared the following message with The N&O when reached for comment:
“In October, when Fraternity and Sorority Life was alerted of the situation, a message of support including relevant university resources were provided to all Panhellenic females in collaboration with The Women’s Center, The Office of Student Life and Advocacy, Student Legal Services, The Office of Equal Opportunity, and the NC State Police Department. University teams continue to be of service for those impacted. This is still an ongoing criminal investigation and we are unable to share any additional details at this time.”
Though North Carolina law doesn’t specifically address computer-generated pornography, also known as “deepfakes,” it is illegal to distribute nonconsensual pornography in the state, The Charlotte Observer previously reported. Violation of that law could lead to a class H felony punishable by up to 25 months in prison.
Beard appears to have graduated from N.C. State in 2024, according to a commencement program. He was arrested Monday and posted a $2,400 bail bond, records show.
This story was originally published February 11, 2025 at 4:12 PM.
