Woman gets 5 years for Mass. prostitution charges

BOSTON (AP) - A New York City woman has been sentenced to five years in federal prison for bringing women from out of state to Massachusetts to work as prostitutes.

Hong Wei was also sentenced Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Boston to five years of probation upon release on charges including forced labor and harboring aliens.

Prosecutors say the 37-year-old Wei, who went by the name "Ms. Chen," was part of a group of people who advertised in newspapers for Asian women to work as prostitutes in brothels around Massachusetts.

Authorities say many of the women were living in the U.S. illegally and some were forced to work in the brothels.

Three other people involved in the scheme have already pleaded guilty. One awaits trial.

Cox Media Group