WICHITA, Kan. – Federal prosecutors have charged three people in a wide-ranging sex trafficking conspiracy operating at nine Asian massage parlors in Wichita.
A criminal complaint filed Wednesday in federal court charges owner Gary H. Kidgell; his wife, Yan Zhang; and employee XiuQing Tian, all of Wichita, with conspiracy to recruit women and coerce them to engage in commercial sex acts.
Court records do not indicate any defense attorneys. The U.S. attorney's office did not know if any have been retained.
The six-count complaint lists four women, identified only by their initials, who were allegedly forced to engage in prostitution.
Prosecutors allege the massage parlors recruited women by placing ads in a Chinese-language newspaper in New York and Los Angeles for women to work at a spa.
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