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HoustonChronicle.com -- http://www.HoustonChronicle.com | Section: Houston & Texas

July 18, 2006, 9:15PM



Woman gets 10 years in prostitution case
Associated Press

DALLAS — A Korean woman who admitted making illegal immigrant women pay off their smuggling debt through prostitution was sentenced today to 10 years in prison.

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Mi Na Malcolm, known as Sora, also was ordered to pay a $460,000 fine. She must forfeit a 2006 BMW, a 2004 Lexus, more than $218,900 in cash and electronic equipment, U.S. Attorney Richard B. Roper said.

Malcolm, 38, pleaded guilty in March to conspiracy to hold or harbor illegal aliens for purposes of prostitution, harboring illegal aliens for commercial advantage and private financial gain, and bulk cash smuggling.

"Mi Na Malcolm preyed upon some of society's most vulnerable individuals — frightened runaways and illegal immigrants who are trapped in a cycle of violence, prostitution and forced labor," Roper said. "The sentence imposed upon Malcolm today should serve as a warning to all who would traffic in and harbor illegal aliens — you will be found and you will pay the price."

From late 2004 to mid-2005, Malcolm paid the smuggling debts of several Korean women who came to the country illegally. She then had the women work off the debt at one of her three Dallas businesses — the Ruby Spa, the Venetian Body Work and the Palm Tree Relaxation.

The women worked six to seven days a week and many were required to be available for prostitution 24 hours per day, according to court documents.

Authorities say Malcolm kept records of many of the women's earnings and payment of their debt. She charged them for rent and food. Malcolm admitted monitoring the women's movements in person, through an escort and via video surveillance.

Police and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents arrested her last year after executing several search warrants at her brothels.


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HoustonChronicle.com -- http://www.HoustonChronicle.com | Section: Houston & Texas
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