22-05-2025
Escambia firefighter charged with child sex crimes pleads not guilty, faces 260 years
A soon-to-be fired Escambia County firefighter charged with over three dozen child sex crimes entered a plea of not guilty May 19.
Florida Department of Law Enforcement special agents arrested 48-year-old Garey Buscaino May 15 after numerous photo and video files depicting child sexual abuse material were allegedly discovered in his possession, resulting in him being charged with 30 counts of possession of child pornography, seven counts of digital voyeurism of a victim less than 16 years old, and one count of using a two-way communication device to facilitate a felony, according to his First Judicial Circuit case file.
Escambia County's Public Information Officer for Public Safety Davis Wood told the News Journal that it's his understanding Buscaino is currently "in the process of being terminated" from his role as a county firefighter.
Law enforcement first looked into Buscaino when a special agent received a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children April 29 pertaining to a user of a common cloud storage account downloading multiple files of child sexual abuse material.
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A phone number listed under Buscaino had uploaded 33 files of CSAM on March 8. Among the over 5,000 files discovered, special agents discovered over 1,000 files of "child erotica" that did not meet the statutory requirements for CSAM, but they did find 96 files of video allegedly taken by Buscaino of a girl without her knowledge.
According to FDLE reports, one of the videos allegedly taken by Buscaino shows another person in the background, which special agents used to link the video to Buscaino. The name and relation of the person was redacted.
Special Agents then used this to conduct a search warrant on Buscaino's home.
"During the execution of the search warrant, hidden cameras were located within Buscaino's bedroom," the report said. "One was disguised as a vape/electronic cigarette, and another disguised as a wall charger.
"Several GoPro style cameras were also recovered from the residence," the report added. "An on-scene forensic examination of the SD cards within the cameras revealed the same voyeuristic video file of the (teen girl)."
Various videos show Buscaino was allegedly recording the teen girl in her own room and the bathroom. When special agents questioned Buscaino about the hidden cameras, he "invoked his right to legal counsel."
Multiple USB drivers were recovered from Buscaino's home, which contained over 100 files of additional CSAM.
Following FDLE's release of Buscaino's arrest, Escambia County Professional Firefighters President Jason Marcum told the News Journal, "Obviously, we don't condone those actions." The organization represents the county's nearly 150 professional firefighters.
"Our priority is just making sure those affected are taken care of care of and cared for," Marcum said. "And as far as the actions of that individual, if proven guilty, that's what it is, the actions of an individual not the firefighters in Escambia County or firefighters across the nation. We take pride in our reputation of being trusted by the public."
Buscaino's next scheduled court date is June 6. If convicted on all counts, he could face up to 260 years in prison.
This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Escambia firefighter Garey Buscaino faces prison for child sex crimes
