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Irving woman pleads guilty to harboring illegal immigrants
South Koreans worked as indentured prostitutes in massage parlors



04:33 PM CST on Friday, March 3, 2006
By TIM WYATT / The Dallas Morning News


A 38-year-old Irving woman pleaded guilty Friday to harboring illegal immigrants from South Korea to work as indentured prostitutes in three massage parlors she ran in Dallas.

During a half-hour hearing in federal court, Mi Na Malcolm admitted to three criminal counts associated with paying smugglers to sneak the women into the U.S. through overseas "recruiters," then forcing them to work long hours to pay off the debts by working as prostitutes.

Ms. Malcolm pleaded guilty to conspiring to harboring illegal aliens for prostitution, profiting from their work, and attempting to mail $60,000 in bulk cash back to South Korea.

She faces up to 10 years in prison during her sentencing hearing in May.

Ms. Malcolm owned three spas in northwest Dallas that were raided in August by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, along with the FBI and Dallas police.

Her federal indictment detailed how the women in her spas – Ruby's Spa, Venetian Body Works and Palm Tree Relaxation – had their passports taken until they worked off their smuggling debts. The women were also charged room and board, and for condoms and lubricants.

While prosecutors did not say how many women worked in the spas, court records state that the women were watched closely at home and at work on video surveillance cameras, and were not free to leave until they paid off Ms. Malcolm.

As part of her plea agreement with federal authorities, Ms. Malcolm opted not to oppose forfeiting more than $200,000 in cash, a 2006 BMW and a 2004 Lexus that were seized in August raids.


E-mail twyatt@dallasnews.com