A former teacher was sentenced to 3.5 years in prison for possessing and distributing over 43,000 child sexual images, including AI-generated ones, after being caught at Manchester Airport in 2023.

Charles Cornelius, a 57-year-old former teacher from Ellesmere Port, was sentenced to three and a half years in prison on December 11, 2025, after pleading guilty to possessing, making, and distributing over 43,000 indecent images of children, including AI-generated content and self-written paedophile manuals. Arrested at Manchester Airport in August 2023 upon returning from Thailand, where he taught with the British Council since 2012, Cornelius had attempted to conceal the material using encryption. Authorities linked him to online uploads dating back to June 2022. The National Crime Agency emphasized his abuse of a position of trust and the use of technology to create harm, reaffirming its commitment to holding offenders accountable and supporting victims.