Political consultant who admitted deepfaking Biden's voice is indicted

Steve Kramer, the political consultant who admitted to NBC News that he was behind a robocall impersonating Joe Biden's voice, has been indicted in New Hampshire.

Kramer faces five counts, including bribery, intimidation and suppression, according to WMUR-TV of Manchester, which first reported the indictment. It is unclear how he is pleading to the charges.

Kramer could not immediately be reached, and his spokesperson declined to comment.

The robocall, which was first reported by NBC News and went out to thousands of New Hampshire voters in January, just ahead of the state's first-in-the-nation presidential primary, used artificial intelligence technology to deepfake Biden, telling voters to stay home and "save" their votes for the November general election.

The call was the first known example of a deepfake’s being used in national American politics. It prompted outcry from officials and watchdogs, propelling the Federal Communications Commission to put forward a new rule banning unsolicited AI robocalls.

State and federal law enforcement officials took the call seriously, eager to send a strong message that they would not tolerate misuse of the new technology, while advocates say new rules are needed.

New Hampshire law enforcement officials quickly indicted two out-of-state telecom companies that they said were involved in distributing the robocall, but the creators of the call remained unknown until a nomadic street magician came forward to NBC News.

Paul Carpenter, who holds a world record in straitjacket escapes but no fixed address, said Kramer hired him to create the audio of Biden's voice used in the call. He provided screenshots of text messages and Venmo transactions to corroborate his account.

Confronted