TAMPA, Fla. — A Pasco County Marine who lost both legs in a 2010 roadside bomb attack in Afghanistan is now working on a different kind of front line. He's helping investigators uncover evidence in child exploitation cases.
Justin Gaertner, whose recovery and journey have been followed for more than a decade, is now a computer forensics analyst with Homeland Security Investigations.
WATCH: Wounded Marine now fights child exploitation on digital front lines
He calls his crew "the geek squad.”
From a workstation lined with computer screens, Gaertner examines hard drives, phones, and other digital devices, searching for evidence tied to cases involving child exploitation, human trafficking, and other crimes.
“We’ve arrested a police officer. We’ve arrested firefighters. Mayors. People of public trust,” he said.
In one recent case, investigators helped build a prosecution against an Oldsmar man accused of victimizing dozens of children, including his own.
“For that instance, I was literally on scene, found the images and videos while the kids were right there in the living room,” Gaertner said.
Gaertner joined the U.S. Marine Corps out of high school and was deployed to Afghanistan, where he was severely injured by an improvised explosive device in 2010. He later transitioned into federal law enforcement work in 2013 through a program that recruits wounded veterans for cybercrime investigations.
“I say that the Marines made me a man,” he said. “But in all reality, this — working for Homeland Security Investigations — this is where I was meant to be.”
His current role often involves reviewing disturbing material, something he said requires mental resilience.
“It’s mentally hard and more bearing,” Gaertner said. “That’s why they pulled in the combat wounded veterans, because we have a certain mindset.”
Investigators say prevention is just as important as enforcement, especially as children gain access to technology at younger ages.
“Internet safety starts in the beginning,” Gaertner said. “That’s the world we are in. We are in a digital world now.”
Federal officials encourage parents to talk openly with their children about online activity, monitor devices and set clear boundaries for internet use. Resources for families are available through Know2Protect at as well as the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, which offers tools for reporting and prevention.
Gaertner said while he has received recognition for his work, the outcomes are difficult to celebrate.
“I wish I would have never had to rescue them in the first place,” he said.
As technology evolves, investigators say so do the tactics used by criminals. But Gaertner said the mission remains unchanged.
“That’s why we say nothing is ever truly deleted,” he said. “And if it is, we are going to end up finding it.”
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