BY TINA L. SCOTT
EDITOR

The list of charges against 22-year-old Vincent Galella of Merrill is growing longer.
On July 28, 2023, Galella was charged with three new criminal counts: 1) attempted first degree sexual assault of a child under age 16 by use or threat of force or violence, 2) sexual assault of a child under 16 years of age, and 3) false imprisonment. All three charges relate to an incident alleged to have occurred back in March 2018 when Galella was 17 years old and the reporting victim was 14 years old.
The alleged incident reportedly took place in a vehicle while it was parked in a rural area in Lincoln County. Then 17-year-old Galella was a passenger in a vehicle driven by another male, and the alleged victim and another female were in the back seat when the driver stopped the vehicle and Galella instructed one of the females to get in the front seat and he then climbed in back with the then 14-year-old girl.
Galella allegedly pinned the girl down and attempted to remove her clothes, which she resisted, repeatedly saying no. After about 30 minutes, during which time he had physical sexual contact with the victim, and the victim essentially fought him off, the driver of the vehicle asked if they could leave and took everyone home, the Criminal Complaint on file in this case said.
“Victim estimated that she told Galella no about 25 to 30 times. Galella and victim attended the same school, but she did not have any other personal relationship [with him] prior to this incident,” the Complaint said.
It is unclear why the alleged incident did not result in charges against Galella in 2018 and it took more than five years for charges to be filed in this incident. Lincoln County District Attorney Kristopher Ellis was out of town and unavailable for comment at the time of this writing, and the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Deputy who took the report did not return calls seeking clarification.
Galella is scheduled to make his initial appearance on the new charges on Aug. 25. If convicted of these three charges, Galella faces up to 76 years in prison, a fine of up to $20,000, or both.