CHEEKTOWAGA, N.Y. — Peter Gerace Jr., the proprietor of Pharaoh’s Gentlemen’s Club, was found guilty by a jury on Friday of bribing a federal agent, drug trafficking, and sex trafficking. Despite the convictions, Gerace was acquitted of a charge of witness tampering. He now faces the possibility of a life sentence, with sentencing set for Aug. 15.
The conviction concluded a lengthy seven-week trial that featured 20 days of testimony from 43 witnesses, including over a dozen former exotic dancers at the club. Throughout the trial, the courtroom scenes were often somber and charged with emotion. Following the reading of the verdict, Gerace, 57, momentarily exchanged whispers and a faint smile with his parents, signaling “I love you” as he was escorted out by U.S. marshals.
Despite being acquitted of witness tampering, the charge certainly highlighted a contentious trial that delved into the mechanisms behind the operations at Pharaoh’s Gentlemen’s Club. Earlier in the trial, deliberations were paused, with the jury requesting a review of testimony related to the allegations of witness tampering.
U.S. Attorney Trini Ross remarked post-verdict, emphasizing the exploitative nature of Gerace’s crimes. “Peter Gerace preyed upon some of the most vulnerable victims we have in this society, those who are addicted to drugs, young women who were addicted to drugs,” Ross said. “He used that to grow his business and to make profits for his business, and today, he will no longer be able to do that.”
Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Tripi, leading the prosecution, praised the courage of the ex-dancers whose testimonies were pivotal to the case. “The victims here are the ones that were brave and deserve most of the credit here,” Tripi noted. He further emphasized the ongoing commitment to rigorously prosecute such cases.
Evidence presented during the trial painted a grim picture of the operations within Pharaoh’s. From 2005 to 2018, jurors learned about the environment where drugs and pressured sex acts were purportedly commonplace, leading to the sex trafficking charges against Gerace.
Defense attorneys Eric Soehnlein and Mark Foti argued that Gerace was merely operating a business where the dancers made independent choices. They portrayed a scenario where, despite the club’s existence in a morally gray area, the dancers had agency and were not coerced by Gerace directly. However, this argument appeared to garner little traction with the jury in light of the overwhelming testimonial evidence against Gerace.
The trial also revealed financial strains on Gerace, with his legal team acknowledging during the proceedings that funding for defense was drying up. This financial revelation came amidst the scrutiny of Gerace’s operational management and ethics.
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