Names of alleged clients in high-profile brothel bust could be revealed today

By CNN Newsource

Published March 14, 2025 10:03 AM

By Neal Riley

BOSTON, Massachusetts (WBZ) — The names of alleged clients in a high-end brothel bust in Massachusetts could be revealed in Cambridge District Court on Friday.

There are 28 alleged johns connected to a sex ring that was run out of upscale apartment buildings in Cambridge, Dedham and Watertown, as well as Virginia. Authorities say it catered to “wealthy and well-connected” customers.

“They are doctors, they are lawyers, they’re accountants, they are executives at high-tech companies, pharmaceutical companies, they’re military officers, government contractors, professors, scientists,” former U.S. attorney for Massachusetts Joshua Levy said at the time of the bust in November 2023.

Alleged johns fought to remain anonymous

More than a dozen of the alleged clients fought to remain anonymous.

“They will undoubtedly lose their jobs, lose their professions and have their lives ripped apart,” attorney Benjamin Urbelis, representing five alleged brothel clients, argued before the Supreme Judicial Court.

But the high court ruled that the media will have access to preliminary court hearings for the alleged clients, siding with the clerk-magistrate who said the “legitimate public interest” in the case outweighed the defendants’ privacy rights. The magistrate will decide Friday whether some of the alleged johns will face charges.

Guilty pleas in brothel bust

Three defendants, Han Lee, Junmyung Lee and James Lee have already pleaded guilty for their roles in running the brothel network.

Prosecutors said James Lee fraudulently applied for and received more than $580,000 in COVID relief funds by submitting fake tax documents and using names of businesses that did not exist.

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