San Jose family arrested on suspicion of running network of ten brothels, trafficking 40 women
A married couple and their adult son were arrested for allegedly operating a network of at least ten brothels disguised as massage parlors across Santa Clara County, generating a million dollars a year in illegal profits, authorities said.
Binghua Bresee, 52, Joseph Bresee, 77, and Binghua Breesee’s son Jiabao Huang, 30, all of San Jose, are accused of trafficking dozens of women at the brothels, according to the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office. The defendants were charged with 26 felonies, including pimping, tax fraud, money laundering and criminal conspiracy.
“The trafficking of human beings has no place in our community, or any other,” said Santa Clara County District Attorney Jeff Rosen in a statement. “Modern slavery is morally and legally wrong and will be met with no toleration and – as you can see by the agencies cooperating in this operation – the strictest legal accountability.”
Joseph Breesee and Binghua Breesee were arrested in a coordinated effort on Dec. 3, prosecutors added. The three defendants were arraigned Dec. 5, where Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge Hector Ramon set their bail at $1 million each.
The investigation, named “Operation Family Ties,” was conducted by investigators from the district attorney’s office, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. State Department, the Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Department and local law enforcement departments. It began in June after a defendant applied to open a massage parlor under someone else’s name in Morgan Hill and a police officer became suspicious, authorities said.
Investigators located brothels in cities including Mountain View, Gilroy, Morgan Hill, San Jose, Cupertino and Hayward.
Investigators identified more than 40 women in the operation. Eighteen who were rescued while authorities served search warrants were provided services by the DA’s Victims Services Unit and nonprofits Community Solutions and YWCA.
Many women who do sex work do so because “their autonomy is heavily constrained by factors like poverty and immigration status,” the DA’s office added. Commerical sex work can lead to crimes including rape, assault and homicide, and it is a crime for anyone to make money from, solicit, assist with or encourage sex work.
The district attorney’s office also froze and seized about $1.25 million in profits.
A fourth co-conspirator was arrested on suspicion of running money for one of the brothel operations, authorities said.
If convicted, all four defendants face jail time, authorities added.
The operation remains under investigation.
To report human trafficking in Santa Clara County, contact law enforcement at 408-792-2700 or httips@dao.sccgov.org. For human trafficking resources, call the confidential 24-hour hotline at 877-363-7238.