3 women held as material witnesses in brothels case

A federal judge has ordered three young women held as material witnesses in the prosecution of two men accused of running brothels in Newcastle, Bellevue and Renton.

The women were arrested Monday when agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raided a home in Renton. Assistant U.S. Attorney Ye-Ting Woo said the women were working as prostitutes and attempted to flee. None has been charged with a crime.

The women's immigration status is in question as well, Woo said.

The women appeared Wednesday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Mary Alice Theiler, who ordered them held at the Federal Detention Center in SeaTac pending possible grand-jury proceedings.

The women are among a series of prostitutes the two men paid to have come to the Seattle area to work in the brothels, according to an indictment. Yin Hoo Yap and Kou-Chwung Liu would buy plane tickets for women working as prostitutes in other West Coast cities and then pick them up at the airport, the indictment said.

The women would work in the brothel for a week or two, and then move on, according to prosecutors.

Yap was arrested earlier this week. Liu was picked up by agents Wednesday and appeared before Judge Theiler later in the day.

Both are charged with conspiracy to transport individuals in furtherance of prostitution and money laundering. The conspiracy charge carries a five-year prison term. Money laundering is punishable by up to 20 years in prison.

The indictment alleges that the brothel moved frequently and had been in operation since at least early 2007. It involved a number of Asian women with nicknames including "Korean Susie," "Vietnamese Happy" and "Malaysia Rose."

The indictment alleges that Yap purchased 13,620 condoms from an online business between February and December 2007.

A confidential informant sent into the Renton home in October said he paid $160 to be led to a room with a mattress by a girl named "Tammy." She disrobed and began to massage his shoulders when a prearranged call from a federal agent interrupted the liaison and gave the informant an excuse to leave.

Mike Carter: 206-464-3706 or mcarter@seattletimes.com