Twelve rich and powerful men who who were clients of a discreet high-class brothel will be named and shamed in court on Friday, March 14.
The twelve men are due to appear before a probable cause hearing in Cambridge, Massachusetts, at 10 a.m. Friday to determine whether they should face charges.
The men include high-level government employees and contractors, public officials, military officers, doctors, and CEOs.
A total of 28 alleged johns will appear in court over the next 2 weeks, the Boston Globe reports.
Some of the johns lawyered up and sought to keep the hearings closed to the public to conceal their identities. They claimed they had a right to privacy.
All of the johns face misdemeanor charges and none of the men have been arrested.
The accused men face a charge of paying for sex, which is unlikely to result in prison time if they’re convicted.
The men reportedly patronized an exclusive brothel ring that operated out of six luxury apartments in Cambridge and Watertown, Massachusetts, as well as Washington, DC’s suburbs.
Federal prosecutors filed charges against the brothel operators because the $600-an-hour prostitutes who worked at the brothel were exploited.
The brothels were raided in late 2023, according to the Boston Globe.
Millions of dollars in cash and stacks of gift cards that were used as payments were among the items seized when the brothels were raided by feds.
Men who paid for the services of one of the sex workers had to provide extensive documentation to verify their identities.
Many of the clients are married and some hold high positions within the U.S. government.
Not all of the johns will be named and shamed in open court. Their identities are being withheld for national security reasons.
Monthly memberships were also available to men who became regular visitors to the brothels.
Three pimps who ran the prostitution ring have already confessed to their crimes.
Four of the brothels were run out of luxury apartment buildings in the suburbs of Boston.
Another 2 brothels were run out of luxury apartment buildings on the Washington DC-Virginia border.
Multiple media outlets challenged requests to hold the hearings in private. The Massachusetts’ State Supreme Court previously ruled the hearings should be held publicly.
However, advocates for the prostitutes say naming the men will scare others into not paying for sex and lower the demand for sex workers, many of whom are trafficked and sometimes killed.
