Dennis Gaal
A Mississippi man who said a birthday visit to Chattanooga for sex with very young boys "is looking to be the best trip I've ever taken" has been sentenced to 25 years in federal prison.
Dennis Gaal, 50, of Picayune, Ms., appeared before Judge Travis McDonough.
Gaal was arrested at the Hotel Chalet at the Chattanooga Choo Choo soon after arriving in town.
He is charged with child rape and two counts of solicitation of a minor.
Gaal had not realized his online conversation was with an undercover FBI officer.
The officer said he began communicating with a man who joined a private online group on Nov. 12. He said the man stated he was originally from Louisiana, but had moved to Mississippi. He said at the time he was in California working as a chef for an offshore hiring company.
He said the man, later identified as Gaal, expressed a preference for very young boys and told of past molestations. Gaal also revealed that he is on a Sex Offender list for convictions in 2000 for sex with a two-year-old boy.
Gaal said his birthday was Dec. 11, and he suggested that he drive up to Chattanooga and get a hotel room. He sent a photo of five infant outfits and an infant elephant rattle, which he said he would bring with him.
Gaal booked a second room for the individual (undercover officer) who was allegedly to supply him with the very young boys.
Following his incarceration, Gaal will be on supervised release for life, and he will be required to register with state sex offender registries and comply with special sex offender conditions during his supervised release.
As part of the plea agreement filed with the court, Gaal agreed to plead guilty to an indictment charging him with one count of interstate travel for the purpose of engaging in illicit sexual conduct.
Federal authorities noted, "Gaal, a registered sex offender from Mississippi, traveled to Chattanooga in December 2023, intending to sexually molest a 10-monthold child. In fact, Gaal had been communicating with a Special Agent of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) who was posing as a person with access to the child. Gaal noted in the online discussions with the undercover agent that the sexual abuse would be “a dream come true.” He arrived in Chattanooga with gifts for the notional child, including Christmas outfits, a stuffed animal, and a rattle. When Gaal arrived, he was arrested and has remained in custody since his arrest."
“The defendant, while already a convicted sex offender, traveled to Tennessee to sexually molest a 10-month-old child,” said Francis M. Hamilton III, U. S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Tennessee. “The facts are outrageous and disturbing. We are dedicated to prosecuting offenders like this to the full extent of the law.”
“Exploitation of children offenses are heinous and leave an immeasurable impact on victims,” said Special Agent in Charge Joseph E. Carrico of the FBI Nashville Field Office. “To protect our children, the FBI will continue to work alongside our law enforcement partners to identify, investigate, and bring sexual predators to justice.”
The criminal indictment was the result of an investigation by the FBI and the investigation was led by FBI Special Agent Samuel Moore.
Assistant United States Attorney James T. Brooks and Special Assistant United States Attorney Charlie Minor with the Hamilton County District Attorney’s Office, represented the United States.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood (PSC), a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006, by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.
Led by the United States Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, PSC marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims.