LEWISTON — Special Agent Justin Kittredge of the Maine State Police Computer Crimes Unit will be the presenter at the USM Lewiston/Auburn Senior College “Food for Thought” 11:30 a.m. luncheon on Friday, March 8. His topic is the Maine State Police Computer Crimes Task Force and its functions.

The Maine State Police Computer Crimes Unit is a multi-jurisdictional entity designed to primarily assist law enforcement officers and prosecutors in Maine with the investigation and prosecution of computer crimes. Computer crimes are those in which a computer is used as an instrument in committing, or assisting in the commission of a crime, or in which the computer is a target of a criminal act.

The unit is headquartered at the Maine Criminal Justice Academy with primary satellite units in Lewiston, Bangor and Portland. The unit (along with its primary satellites) has seven detectives/special agents and eight forensic examiners.

Recent legislation will increase the complement by two detectives and an additional forensic examiner. In 2011, the unit investigated more than 200 Internet crimes against children cases along with more than 200 other computer-assisted crimes. Additionally, the unit closed out 314 cases in 2011.

Kittredge will discuss the evolution of cybercrime and cyber culture, including leading cybercrime investigations, identifying and deterring child sex exploitation and assisting the law enforcement community.

Law enforcement also has many issues to face when dealing with cybercrime such as the lack of training among the law enforcement community, corporate secrecy, jurisdictional conflicts and legal issues such as privacy and free speech that may all have a bearing on the successful conduction of a cybercrime investigation. Kittredge will include basic measures we can all take to better protect others and ourselves from cybercrimes.

Kittredge has been in law enforcement for 14 years and has been assigned to the Maine State Police Computer Crimes Unit to investigate Internet crimes against children and other cyber-related cases since 2011. He serves as a dual-role investigator conducting digital forensic analysis in addition to leading investigations.

Kittredge, a certified forensic examiner, has attended several law enforcement training courses both relative to criminal investigation in general and cyber-crime in particular. He has led numerous investigations involving child exploitation on the Internet, digital media and computer systems. He earned his bachelor’s degree in the administration of justice from Roger Williams University of Bristol, R.I.

Senior College, now in its 14th year, presents the monthly 11:30 luncheon program in the Function Room 170 at USM LAC. The cost, which includes lunch, is $7 with advance reservation or $8 at the door. Reservations must be made by noon on March 7 by calling 753-6510. Any late callers will be considered “at the door.”

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