Source : Perth Now news
A private school graduate who “degraded and humiliated” a young woman with sexual explicit deepfakes has walked free from court after being spared jail.
William Hamish Yeates, who attended the $20,000-a-year Mercedes College in Adelaide has become the first person in South Australia to be convicted of new federal offences relating to deepfake images.
The 20-year-old from Adelaide posted a barrage of AI-created images and videos of a young woman he knew on X and the pornographic website Ero Me in a five-month campaign of abuse.
His victim was just 17 years old when the offending began and had previously told the court he was somebody she thought she could trust.
The University of Adelaide law student, who had become absorbed in an online community centred on pornography, misogyny and the controversial influencer Andrew Tate, pleaded guilty to two counts each of using a carriage service in a harassing way and the creation or alteration of sexual material without consent.
But judge Anne Barnett opted not to place him behind bars for the offences, instead suspending his two-year and three-month jail sentence under a recognisance release order.
Sentencing Yeates in South Australia’s District Court on Tuesday, Judge Barnett said the offending had left his young victim “degraded and humiliated”.
“She now questions her judgment and whether she can trust other people,” she said.
“Understandably, she describes this part of her life as overwhelming.
“Your offending has tainted what were and should be happy memories for her – the first time she saw her graduation photos were on an adult website.”
However, Judge Barnett said Yeates was not motivated by malice, having been desensitised by the online content he had consumed from a young age and had shown genuine remorse.
She added he had used AI to superimpose the young woman onto pornographic material, which he used to try to gain approval of the online community he had discovered.
The offending spanned several occasions between August 2024 and February 2025 – and he even posted explicit material online on Christmas Day.
“You became involved in online communities for which the creation and sharing sexualised images of women became normalised and you started seeking validation in those communities,” Judge Barnett added.
“It is said you failed to fully appreciate the serious criminal nature of your actions.”
Judge Barnett said Yeates had since developed a “greater understanding” of the nature of the offending.
At a previous hearing, Yeates had read a letter of apology to his victim in which he described his behaviour as “grotesque”.
“As you acknowledge in your letter, it is unjust that she should suffer the consequences for conduct which had no knowledge and she played no part.
“Your offending has intruded upon her life. Your letter of apology conveyed an understanding of the impact and harm you have caused.”
Yeates left court in silence, declining to answer any questions from the waiting media.
