PUTNAM COUNTY, Ga. — A Georgia man convicted of repeatedly sexually abusing a 7-year-old girl and recording the assaults on his cellphone has been sentenced to what prosecutors believe is the longest prison sentence ever handed down in the Ocmulgee Judicial Circuit.
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The Ocmulgee District Attorney’s Office says Corey Hickey was convicted Thursday on a 31-count indictment that included charges of rape of a child under 10 years old, aggravated child molestation, child molestation, and sexual exploitation of children.
Prosecutors said Hickey targeted his roommate’s young daughter over six months, sexually assaulting the child and recording the abuse on his cellphone.
Investigators said two images Hickey uploaded to ChatGPT were flagged and forwarded to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, which then issued a cyber tip to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation’s Child Exploitation and Computer Crimes Unit.
According to prosecutors, within three days of receiving the tip, a GBI agent confirmed the images were created in Putnam County.
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After Hickey’s arrest, investigators seized his cellphone and uncovered numerous videos allegedly showing the abuse of the child. Authorities said forensic investigators also found more than 4,800 images and videos of child sexual abuse material stored on the phone, along with more than 400 additional files in a Google Drive account.
After deliberating for about 45 minutes, the jury returned guilty verdicts on all counts.
A judge sentenced Hickey to two consecutive life sentences without the possibility of parole, followed by three additional consecutive life sentences with the possibility of parole, plus 220 years in prison.
Prosecutors said the sentence is believed to be the longest ever imposed in the judicial circuit.
The district attorney’s office thanked the agencies involved and also the judge for the sentence she handed down.
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