The ex-boyfriend of a Department of Homeland Security official — now on administrative leave for allegedly engaging in a “sugar daddy” relationship — is allegedly a business executive who raked in tens of millions of dollars’ worth of government contracts over the past two years.
Robert Bianchi owns a federal defense contracting firm in Maryland — and is using the government to retaliate against his ex-girlfriend, DHS deputy assistant secretary for counterterrorism Julia Varvaro, after a relationship that “ended badly,” sources claim.
Bianchi’s Maryland firm, SDVO Solutions, LLC, has received over $67 million in federal government contracts beginning in 2015 — nearly a third of which came just in fiscal years 2025 and 2026, according to government records reviewed by The Post.
The company does IT and telecom work and had its biggest year in 2025, with contracts from the Department of Defense, the Department of Health and Human Services, and others. The firm advertises itself as being run by a service-disabled veteran CEO.
There is no indication that Bianchi was awarded those contracts as a result of his alleged relationship with Varvaro.
The Daily Mail first reported that a business executive named Robert B. spent “$30,000-$40,000 for vacations, Cartier jewelry, expensive handbags, and various shopping trips” on Varvaro before their three-month relationship recently ended.
That implosion resulted in Bianchi filing a complaint with the DHS Office of Inspector General to review Varvaro’s conduct — including her reportedly maintaining a profile on the so-called “sugar daddy” website Seeking and having smoked marijuana while serving in the Trump administration.
Bianchi “added a lot of false information” to his complaint, including the allegations of drug use and that other sugar daddies footed the bill for Varvaro’s tuition, according to a source, who said her parents paid for the education.
Bianchi did not respond to requests for comment from The Post.
This person familiar with the relationship also noted that Varvaro was not suffering from “financial stress” at the time of their three-month fling. The source said Bianchi “constantly bragged he dated 21-year-olds” and that Varvaro, 29, “was on the older end of his usual range.”
Varvaro has a master’s degree and a Ph.D. in Homeland Security, and worked at the Federal Emergency Management Agency before coming on as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Counterterrorism at DHS in May 2025, according to her LinkedIn.
“Robert B.” told The Daily Mail the pair met on Hinge, a dating app, and the two dated for several months, and that he took her on expensive vacations to Aruba, Italy and other destinations.
“He was on those trips too and seemed to enjoy them,” the source asserted.
“Horrible that it sets a stigma that if a relationship ends badly, the man can try to jeopardize your job and destroy your reputation. For a man to think he has the authority to try and ruin a much younger woman just because he didn’t like the outcome is horrible.”
The Daily Mail reported that “Robert B.” filed a complaint with the Department of Homeland Security OIG against Varvaro, alleging the counterterrorism official had a profile on the sugar daddy website and he “did not want a sugar daddy/prostitution relationship.” The complaint triggered an internal investigation and led to Varvaro being placed on leave.
DHS or DHS OIG did not respond to a request for comments on Bianchi’s ID or government contracting.
