Woman is accused of running a high-end brothel network and pleads guilty

BOSTON (AP) — A Massachusetts woman accused of running a high-end brothel network with wealthy and celebrity customers in that state and the Washington, D.C. suburbs plans to enter her plea Friday in federal court, according to court documents to change to guilty.

According to prosecutors, Han Lee and two other people were charged earlier this year with one count of conspiracy to persuade, entice and compel one or more persons to travel in interstate or foreign commerce to engage in prostitution and one count Money laundering case.

James Lee of Torrance, California, and Junmyung Lee of Dedham, Massachusetts, were also charged.

Han Lee initially pleaded not guilty. She remains in custody.

A lawyer for Han Lee, Scott Lauer, said she would remain in custody after the hearing but declined further comment. A lawyer for James Lee declined to comment. A lawyer representing Junmyung Lee said his next court date has been postponed.

Authorities said the commercial sex ring in Massachusetts and Northern Virginia targeted politicians, corporate executives, military officers, lawyers, professors and other well-connected customers.

Prosecutors have not publicly named any of the buyers and no charges have been filed against them. Acting Massachusetts U.S. Attorney Josh Levy said prosecutors were committed to holding accountable both those who initiated the scheme and those who fueled the demand.

Some of the buyers have appealed to Massachusetts' highest court to have their names kept secret.

The brothel operation used websites that falsely claimed to advertise nude models for professional photography, prosecutors allege. The operators rented high-end apartments to use as brothels in Watertown and Cambridge, Massachusetts, and Tysons and Fairfax, Virginia, prosecutors said.

Han Lee recruited women and maintained the websites and brothels, authorities said. They said she paid Junmyung Lee, one of her employees, between $6,000 and $8,000 a month in cash in exchange for booking appointments for the buyers and bringing women to the brothels.

The operators raked in hundreds of thousands of dollars through the network, paying men anywhere from about $350 to more than $600 an hour depending on the service, prosecutors said.

Officials say Han Lee concealed more than $1 million in proceeds from the ring by, among other things, converting the money into money orders to make it look legitimate.

According to court documents, the defendants established house rules for the women while they were in a particular city to maintain trade secrecy and ensure that the women did not draw attention to residential prostitution work.

According to court documents, authorities seized cash, ledgers detailing the brothels' activities and phones believed to be used to communicate with sex clients from their homes.

The agent also found items at Han Lee's home that suggested her “lavish and extravagant spending habits,” including luxury shoes and bags, investigators said. Each website outlined a screening process that interested sex buyers completed to be considered for appointment bookings. This included requiring customers to fill out a form providing their full names, email addresses, phone numbers, employers and references (if any), authorities said.

The defendants also kept local telephone numbers of the brothels to communicate with customers; sent them a “menu” of available options at the brothel, including the women and sexual services available and the hourly rate; Investigators said he texted customers directions to the brothel's location.