The founder and executive chairman of a Pentagon defense contractor is in Lebanon County jail without bail after allegedly confessing online to an undercover agent that he had sexual contact with pre-teen girls and might be interested in meeting young girls in Lebanon County.
In a multi-count criminal complaint filed on Nov. 6, the Pennsylvania Attorney General alleges that 57-year-old Eric Gillespie of Pittsburgh engaged in online conversations with an agent who was posing as a father offering his daughter for sex.
The investigation was conducted jointly by the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s office and the Lebanon County District Attorney’s office.
Until recently, Gillespie had been listed as the founder and executive chairman of Govini, a maker of product acquisition and logistics software used by U.S. military and security agencies. His name appears to have been removed from Govini’s web page. Govini’s board of directors issued a statement late Wednesday saying that Gillespie had been terminated.
“The actions of one depraved individual should not in any way diminish the hard work of the broader team and their commitment to the security of the United States of America,” said the firm in the statement.
Gillespie is charged with two counts of unlawful contact with a minor–corruption of minors with sexual contact, one count of unlawful contact with a minor–attempt/solicitation/conspiracy, and one count of criminal use of communication facility.
All are felonies that carry a maximum combined sentence of 54 years in jail.
According to a criminal complaint and affidavit of probable cause filed before Magisterial District Judge John Ditzler, an undercover special agent with the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General’s Child Predator Section on Sept. 12 posted on FetLife.com, “anyone looking for some DDLG tonight in Lebanon? I’m hosting.” The affidavit says that the agent was participating in an undercover operation with the Lebanon County District Attorney’s office to combat sexual exploitation of children in Lebanon County.
“DDLG,” according to court documents, is internet slang for “Dom Daddy, Little Girl.” FetLife “is a Canadian social media website for users to post and chat with others regarding various sexual topics and events,” according to the affidavit.
The affidavit of probable cause alleges that someone with the screen names “HeresDanny” on FetLife and “Dannysullivan123” on Session, an encrypted messaging platform, responded to the agent, saying “Western PA here with similar interest and lots of experience, access,” and suggesting that they switch to Signal, another encrypted messaging app.
In transcripts of online chats shared in the affidavit, “Dannysullivan123” sent the agent photos of a clothed and partially unclothed prepubescent female that he described as “a recent playmate.” The state agent responded with “I let my 10 yo [sic] daughter play with others.”
The agent described sending “a photo media file of an undercover Agent regressed with AI technology to appear approximately 10 years of age,” to which the account Dannysullivan123 replied, “cute.”
The agent then offered his supposed 10-year-old daughter for sex if Dannysullivan123 wanted to travel to Lebanon, but he apparently did not accept the offer.
The account Dannysullivan123 went on to tell the agent, “tomorrow I have a 3 yo [sic] black girl for 2 hours alone,” stating that he would be babysitting her. The account stated that the connection was made “through church group for single mothers my wife helps” and “I’m babysitting.” The account described potential sexual assault of the child.
The account Dannysullivan123 then stopped replying for several days, and the agent attempted unsuccessfully to reestablish contact by asking, “how was the play date Saturday,” and getting no response.
Agents then issued a series of subpoenas for information about the HeresDanny account to FetLife, noting that the email address linked to the account had “dannysullivan123” in it, matching the Session username. Agents subpoenaed several other online sites and databases and eventually yielded phone numbers, an email address, and a Verizon account linked to Gillespie.
Court records also show that Gillespie had listed postal addresses in Pittsburgh, Arlington, and San Francisco.
An arrest warrant for Gillespie was issued by MDJ Maria Dissinger on Nov. 6, and he was committed to the Lebanon County Correctional Facility the following day, where he remained without bail at publication time. Dissinger did not disclose a reason for denying bail, but bail is sometimes denied in non-homicide cases if the defendant is considered a clear danger to the public or a flight risk.
Neither court documents nor the Attorney General’s media release describe the circumstances or location of Gillespie’s apprehension, whether he came to Lebanon County at any time, or the exact connection to the charges of a Springwood Drive address listed in the affidavit.
A preliminary hearing before MDJ Ditzler is scheduled for Nov. 20 at 8:30 a.m. in the Lebanon Municipal Building.
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