4 people found guilty of operating sex trafficking ring in Boston area

By Dialynn Dwyer Four people have been found guilty of operating a sex trafficking ring and running several brothels in the Boston area, the Massachusetts Attorney General’s office announced Tuesday. Cristina Lasso, 52, of Saugus; Jose Deblas, 38, of Lynn; Marlon Nagano, 43, of East Boston; and Jorge Lasso, 60, of Chelsea were convicted by a jury in Suffolk Superior Court following a five-week trial. The group was accused of trafficking women from Central and South America through four brothels in East Boston, Chelsea, and Lynn on a weekly basis between October 2018 to July 2019.

Prosecutors said customers paid the four brothel leaders to have sex with the trafficked women on a daily basis. Cristina Lasso, who prosecutors said was the head of the organization, was found guilty of four counts of trafficking persons for sexual servitude, four counts of maintaining a house of prostitution, four counts of keeping a house of ill fame, and one count of money laundering. Jorge Lasso, Deblas, and Nagano were accused of recruiting victims, advertising the sexual services, setting up appointments for customers, transporting the women between brothels, and facilitating the financial exchanges.



Jorge Lasso was found guilty of one count of trafficking persons for sexual servitude and one count of money laundering, while Deblas was found guilty of one count of trafficking persons for sexual servitude, two counts of maintaining a house of prostitution, two counts of keeping a house of ill fame, and one count of money laundering. Nagano was found guilty of one count of trafficking persons for sexual servitude, one count of maintaining a house of prostitution, two counts of keeping a house of ill fame, and one count of money laundering. Nine people were originally charged in the case in 2019.

The four people convicted Tuesday are scheduled to return to court on May 2 for sentencing. Sign up for the Today newsletter Get everything you need to know to start your day, delivered right to your inbox every morning. Be civil.

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