An example of AI child sexual exploitation material as seen on Tik Tok on the phone of former Queensland detective Jon Rouse at Parliament House in Canberra, Thursday, July 17, 2025. [Photo Credit: AAP Image/Mick Tsikas]
A depraved man who elicited sexual abuse material from more than 80 children in Australia and overseas via social media will spend up to 30 years behind bars.
Karan Kumar, 34, often used threats and lied about his age and gender online during the offending on applications including Snapchat which spanned from 2018 to 2023.
He also offered money, vapes and a PlayStation to some victims in return for explicit images of themselves or to pressure them to perform sexual acts.
“No child and no family should have to deal with the aftermath of such heinous conduct,” Supreme Court of Tasmania Justice Kate Cuthbertson said on Friday.
Kumar’s ability to access children with “apparent ease” showed the importance of federal government age restrictions on social media use and the dangers of such platforms, she said.
Kumar was sentenced to a total of 30 years’ jail with a non-parole period of 18 years.
He earlier pleaded guilty to more than 80 child sexual abuse-related offences, including 67 counts of engaging in sexual activity with a child using a carriage service.
Kumar first came to the attention of Queensland police in 2021 in relation to a social media account set up under a fake name purporting to be an 11-year-old boy.
After a search warrant in 2023, he was found with 551 child exploitation videos on his laptop and mobile phone.
Ms Cuthbertson said Kumar had barely shown any remorse for the predatory offending, which he recorded, and hadn’t taken any steps toward rehabilitation.
The crimes were “breathtaking in their volume”, she said, adding the state had been unable to find a comparable case in terms of the number of victims.
The mother of one girl said her daughter had become withdrawn, struggled with anxiety and isolated herself as a result of Kumar, Ms Cuthbertson said.
Kumar, who was living in Australia on a bridging visa, had since been disowned by his family in India and accepted he would be deported at some point, she said.
He will placed on the sex offender register for 25 years after his release from jail.
