On November 20, 2018, Dominic Roach, 37, of Sicklerville, New Jersey, was sentenced to 18-36 years in prison following the first human trafficking trial in Lancaster County. The CSE Institute first reported on this story following Roach’s convictions on eighteen counts of charges stemming from a human trafficking ring discovered last year.
Roach was initially arrested on November 21, 2017, following an investigation that was initiated when East Lampeter Township Police responded to a hotel for a disturbance. The investigation uncovered that Roach trafficked two New Jersey women to Lancaster County and forced them to perform sexual acts in exchange for money. According to news outlets, at least seven hotels were used in the operation and a vehicle was rented for Roach to travel and collect the payments. Roach received approximately half of the payments and forced the women to pay for both the hotel fees and for the drugs that he supplied to them.
During sentencing, Assistant District Attorney Karen Mansfield referred to Roach’s actions as “modern-day slavery.” Judge Donald Totaro considered Roach’s extensive criminal history and expressed concern regarding his potential for future dangerousness.
The CSE Institute commends the Lancaster County District Attorney’s Office, the East Lampeter Township Police, and the Federal Bureau of Investigationfor their collaborative efforts throughout Roach’s arrest and conviction. The CSE Institute also applauds the efforts of Lancaster County to combat human trafficking. As District Attorney Craig Stedman stated, “[h]opefully this conviction and sentence will send a message that human trafficking will not be tolerated in Lancaster County.”
All views expressed herein are personal to the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law or Villanova University.