Massachusetts man, removed by Dominican Republic authorities, faces charges of sex tourism

BOSTON – A Shrewsbury, Mass., man has been charged in federal court with engaging in sex with a minor in the Dominican Republic. This investigation is being led by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

Conrad Gallant, 61, previously of Winchendon, Mass., and most recently of Shrewsbury, was charged in a criminal complaint with engaging in illicit sexual conduct in foreign places. The complaint alleges that on several occasions between February 2011 and February 2012, Gallant traveled to the Dominican Republic and engaged in sexual acts with a minor. According to court documents, Gallant engaged in a sexual relationship with a then 14-year-old girl, promised and paid her money, and took photographs of her. Also, according to the same court documents, Gallant asked the minor victim to bring him other female minors with whom he could have sex.

Gallant was arrested in the Dominican Republic March 4, 2012. He arrived in the United States late yesterday, and is scheduled for his initial court appearance today in U.S. District Court in Miami at 1:30 p.m.

If convicted, Gallant faces up to 30 years in prison, a lifetime of supervised release and a $250,000 fine.

U.S. Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz, District of Massachusetts; Special Agent in Charge of HSI Boston Bruce M. Foucart; Worcester County District Attorney Joseph D. Early, Jr.; and Superintendent of the Massachusetts State Police (MSP) Colonel Marian McGovern, made the announcement today.

The U.S. Attorney's Office would like to extend its appreciation to HSI's attaché in Santo Domingo, Dominican Tourist Police (Politur), Dominican prosecutors in Higuey and Santo Domingo, Dominican Migration and HSI's Santo Domingo Transnational Criminal Investigative Unit members for their assistance and cooperation.

The case is being investigated by HSI Boston with assistance from the MSP Detective Unit assigned to District Attorney Early's office and MSP troopers from the Digital Evidence and Multimedia Section.

HSI's ongoing efforts to target suspects involved in child exploitation offenses are part of Operation Predator, a nationwide HSI initiative to protect children from sexual predators, including those who travel overseas for sex with minors, Internet child pornographers, criminal alien sex offenders and child sex traffickers. HSI encourages the public to report suspected child predators and any suspicious activity through its toll-free hotline at 1-866-DHS-2-ICE or by completing its online tip form. Both are staffed around the clock by investigators.

Suspected child sexual exploitation or missing children may be reported to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, an Operation Predator partner, at 1-800-843-5678 or NCMEC's CyberTipLine.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael I. Yoon.