The third person charged with operating a brothel network that catered to wealthy and powerful clients in Cambridge, Watertown, and the Washington, D.C., suburbs pleaded guilty in federal court last week , prosecutors said.
James Lee, 70, of Torrance, Calif., also pleaded guilty to illegally receiving $580,000 in Covid-19 relief funds, US Attorney Leah B. Foley’s office said in a statement.
Lee used both his real name and stolen identities, including those of other individuals, to secure luxury apartment leases for the brothel network, prosecutors said.
From at least January 2022 until November 2023, when it was broken up , the network served hundreds of men, prosecutors said.
Lee earned $1,000 per active lease each month, plus compensation for travel to the locations. He also managed calls and coordinated maintenance and inspections, facilitating the near-complete isolation of the exploited women, according to the statement.
At a hearing Wednesday, he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to coerce interstate travel for prostitution, as well as money laundering and wire fraud, according to the statement.
The money laundering charge stems from Lee and his coconspirators’ efforts to conceal the proceeds of the brothel network by depositing cash, making peer-to-peer transfers, and buying money orders below reporting thresholds, the statement said.
The wire fraud charge stems from Lee fraudulently obtaining over $580,000 in COVID-19 relief funds between March 2020 and September 2021, according to the statement.
Lee is scheduled to be sentenced on April 29. He could face sentences of up to five years and 20 years on the three counts, the statement said.
Lee and his two codefendants, Han Lee and Junmyhung Lee, were indicted by a federal grand jury in February 2024, the statement said. The trio are not related, according to prosecutors.
Han Lee, 42, of Cambridge, the ringleader of the brothel network, pleaded guilty in September 2024 and is is set to be sentenced on March 19, the statement said.
Junmyung Lee, 31, of Dedham, hired by Han Lee to manage client and worker rosters, also pleaded guilty in October 2024 and will be sentenced April 18, the statement said.
Rita Chandler can be reached at rita.chandler@globe.com.
