All five leaders of a decades-old sex trafficking ring — which allegedly tricked hundreds of Thai women into “modern-day sex slavery” — have been found guilty on all counts by a federal jury in the US city of St. Paul, Minnesota.
The six-week trial, which determined the fate of Michael Morris, 65; Pawinee Unpradit, 46; Saowapha Thinram, 44; Thoucharin Ruttanamongkongul, 35; and Waralee Wanless, 39, came to a conclusion early this morning when jurors returned with the verdict, after only one day of deliberation, reported Star Tribune.
The five were charged with sex trafficking, using transportation for prostitution, money laundering and using communication facilities” — such as phone or internet — to promote prostitution.
Morris was also sentenced with another charge for the use of force, threats of force, fraud and coercion.
According to prosecutors, most of the Thai women who fell prey to the ring came from poor backgrounds and joined voluntarily, having been promised a better life.
Little did they know, however, that in agreeing to relocate to America, the victims had entered into debt bondage “contracts” with the traffickers in Thailand. They were told they owed the organization anywhere from US$40,000 (THB1.3 million) to US$60,000 (about THB2 million) each in exchange for their fake visas and travel to the US.
READ: Thai victim testifies against alleged leaders of sophisticated sex-trafficking operation
However, the money they made from prostitution was mostly taken by the ringleaders and what little was left was used to pay for food, rent, and personal items, making it impossible for them to repay their debts.
According to court papers, the victims were flown into the US, then “assigned” apartments in cities across the country where they were held captive and forced to entertain customers. Women, reportedly, weren’t allowed any freedom and their families were threatened if they made any attempt to escape.
One victim, identified only as “Amy”, testified against the suspects last month, saying she was assigned to a one-bedroom apartment in Phoenix, Arizona, where she spent most of her days.
“I work in there, I eat in there, and I sleep in there,” she said, adding that her long work days would start at 8am and didn’t end until 10pm.
She explained that she would have to have sex with as many as 10 clients a day and treat each client like her “personal god”.
US Attorney Erica MacDonald described the case as one of the largest trafficking networks ever busted at the federal level.
“Sex trafficking is an industry that is built on supply and demand, and this organization fed that industry. It exploited, it abused, enslaved, and sold women in response to the high demand for commercial sex that exists not only in the United States but here in Minnesota,” she said.
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