Ben Cullen, a leading figure in the Oxfordshire branch of protest group Raise the Colours, appeared in court in Reading on Wednesday charged with making indecent images of children in what prosecutors say involved AI-generated material. Cullen, 45, from Wallingford, faces three counts relating to dozens of images allegedly created on 25 March 2021.
After Cullen was identified locally as one of the most visible organisers behind a wave of flag-hanging across Oxfordshire, activity that has drawn both support and anger amid wider anti-immigration protests around the UK. Raise the Colours, which presents itself as a grass-roots movement centred on displaying national flags, has in recent months been in open conflict with Oxfordshire County Council over banners and flags placed on lampposts, bridges and roadside structures without permission.
