Sexual Assault Charges Filed Against Former Enfield Fire Official

ENFIELD, CT — A lengthy investigation into an alleged sexual assault from three years ago led to the issuance of a warrant and two felony charges filed against an Enfield man Thursday.

Patrick Gallo, 56, turned himself in at Enfield police headquarters early thursday morning after learning of the warrant for his arrest. He was charged with first-degree sexual assault and first-degree unlawful restraint, both felonies.

According to an affidavit supporting Gallo's arrest, on May 14, 2016, a woman filed a complaint with Enfield police claiming she had been sexually assaulted by him. Her account says she "had been having interaction with him at a private home," but began to feel dizzy after drinking a bottled water.

She lay down on a sectional sofa and when she awoke, Gallo "was next to her and her hand was down his pants." She claimed she bobbed in and out of consciousness, but at one point, Gallo was touching her in a private area and her jeans were partially unbuttoned and pulled down. She said she told him to stop, but he did not, Police Chief Alaric Fox said.

The woman told police she drove Gallo home but began crying when they stopped to get something to eat. She "told him what she thought happened and he started crying," Fox said, adding, "she asked him if he had raped her, and he didn't answer but began crying again."

Earlier this year, the woman followed up on her original complaint, and witnesses corroborated her story. Gallo was re-interviewed in late May, and claimed the "light behavior" was consensual, Fox said.

Gallo was a longtime member of the Shaker Pines Fire Department, retiring as a captain in 2012, according to Fire Chief Charles Macsata.

Gallo was released on a $50,000 bond, and is scheduled to return to Enfield Superior Court Sept. 12.