On September 11, Andrew Gallo, 40, of Cooper Beech Lane, was arrested after he allegedly drugged and sexually assaulted at least six women between the ages of 17 and 30. He is charged with five counts of rape by causing impairment, six counts of possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance, four counts of strangulation, two counts of selling or furnishing liquor or malt brewed beverage to minors, and one count of corruption of minors.
According to his victims, Gallo contacted them through a website by the name of sugardaddymeet.com under the username: DREWSTER420. This site markets itself as “the most visited sugar daddy site and app for successful men and attractive women looking for mutually fulfilling relationships.”
According to the victims, Gallo invited them over for dates at his home and served them drinks laced with various undisclosed controlled substances, including methamphetamine, ecstasy, and cocaine. According to the criminal complaint, the victims described feeling “strange” after consuming the drinks, which typically came from already opened bottles of wine or other alcohols mixed in drinks he made himself. The women described their sexual contact with Gallo as “violent,” and related feeling a loss of control and like they could not stop him during their sexual encounters. All of the victims reported engaging in rough sex with Gallo, with some describing him putting his hands around their throat to the point of them passing out or almost passing out. The victims also reported side effects from the purported drugs, including staying up for days, hallucinations, and psychosis.
According to the prosecutor’s office, lab results ultimately revealed that the victims had methamphetamine and other controlled substances in their system. Police also report to have discovered a bottle of alcohol in Gallo’s apartment that tested positive for methamphetamine. Gallo is currently being held in Bucks County Correctional Facility on $500,000 bail awaiting his preliminary hearing, scheduled for September 24.
The CSE Institute commends the Bristol Township Police Department and the Bucks County District Attorney’s Office for their efforts in arresting and prosecuting Gallo. However, in cases such as this, we urge law enforcement to consider the use of Pennsylvania’s sex trafficking statute alongside the current charges. This is particularly important given the involvement of multiple victims and the likelihood that other victims may still be unreported.
Under Pennsylvania law, a person is guilty of trafficking if he recruits, entices, solicits, patronizes, advertises, harbors, transports, provides, obtains, or maintains an individual if he knows or recklessly disregards that the individual is subject to involuntary sexual servitude. In Pennsylvania, sexual servitude includes any sex act or performance involving a sex act in exchange for anything of value obtained by force, fraud, or coercion.
In this case, we believe a trafficking charge against Gallo is warranted. The facts allege that Gallo deliberately used a sugar dating website to entice multiple women into his home, where he subsequently coerced them into sexual acts against their will by drugging them. This behavior satisfies the key elements of human trafficking.
It is crucial to note the role that sugar dating plays in sex trafficking. Sugar dating is defined as “a business-like arrangement[], where the wealthy partner, or sugar daddy (or mama), exchanges money and gifts for the “companionship” of a younger partner (the sugar baby) without necessarily including sex in the agreement.” While many view this arrangement as harmless, it often results in wealthy men preying on young women in vulnerable situations who seek financial assistance, creating a significant imbalance of power. Because of this misconception, many women are easily tricked or manipulated into being exploited by men positing themselves as “sugar daddies.”
Given this context, it is evident that there is significant overlap between sugar dating and human trafficking. Indeed, many “sugar daddies” are actually traffickers or sex buyers who lure young women with financial incentives, only to coerce them into sexual activities and even sell them to third parties for sexual services. Despite being marketed as casual relationships without sex, sugar dating often evolves from a “fun arrangement” into a “you owe me” situation.
“The victims in this case are so courageous,” Bucks County District Attorney Jennifer Schorn said in a news conference. “They came forward to report crimes that quite frankly predators like this assume the victims won’t have the strength to do so and I commend them for their strength and courage.”
The CSE Institute joins District Attorney Schorn in praising the survivors for their courage and strength in coming forward and reporting the crimes committed against them. We encourage law enforcement to persist in investigating potential sex trafficking cases and to utilize the federal sex trafficking statute when appropriate. Anyone who has more information or may have been targeted by Gallo is asked to contact Bristol Township Police Department Detective Emilyann Maialetti at 267-812-3024 or Bucks County Detectives at 215-348-6354.
The CSE Institute will continue to provide updates as they become available.
All views expressed herein are personal to the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law or of Villanova University.