Junmyung Lee, the man accused of screening and arranging clients for a chain of high-end brothels in Cambridge and Watertown, pleaded guilty in federal court Wednesday to charges of conspiring to force women into prostitution and money laundering.
Lee, 31, is the second of three men who allegedly ran a brothel to plead guilty. Cambridge resident Han Lee is believed to be the ringleader of the operation. admitted his guilt end of last month.
A third co-conspirator, James Lee, is expected to go on trial in December. The three people are not related.
The men were accused of running brothels from upscale apartments in Massachusetts and Virginia, primarily selling Asian American women. The brothels in Cambridge and Watertown catered to influential clients, including elected officials and professors, although none of the customers have been named.
The Massachusetts Supreme Court ordered hearings in February on suspected clients of a Cambridge brothel. will be public. In early September, the court heard the arguments of the representatives to appeal the decision on sex buyers. Generally, probable cause hearings are held in camera unless the case is in the public interest.
In Wednesday’s hearing, federal authorities said they found a cell phone in Junmyeon Lee’s apartment with connections to more than 2,800 people connected to the brothel. Lee allegedly earns up to $8,000 a month for transporting women between apartments for paid sex.
Lee is scheduled to be sentenced on February 12. He was released on bail but must wear a GPS tracking device.
— Writer Sally E. Edwards can be contacted [email protected]. Follow it with an X @sallyedwards04 or by Threads @sally_edwards06.
— Writer Asher J. Montgomery can be contacted [email protected]. Follow it with an X @asherjmont or by Threads @asher_montgomery.