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Sunday, February 9, 2025
CrimeMilpitas couple ran 3 brothels on Murphy Ranch Road, trafficked over 100...

Milpitas couple ran 3 brothels on Murphy Ranch Road, trafficked over 100 sex workers

Santa Clara County District Attorney Jeff Rosen has charged a Milpitas couple with felony human trafficking, pimping and pandering, and money laundering on allegations that they operated a network of local brothels, which trafficked more than 100 sex workers from China, South Korea, and Eastern Europe. 

David Davies, 57, and Larong Hu, 38, were arrested earlier this week following a two-year investigation by the Milpitas Police Department, the U.S. Department of State Diplomatic Security Services, and the District Attorney’s Bureau of Investigations. Throughout the investigation, police uncovered six brothels in Santa Clara County: three in Milpitas and three in San Jose.

The brothels were connected to a national network of commercial sex traffickers, whereby women would be sent to other cities to “continue their usually low paid, illegal work,” according to a news release from the DA’s office.

According to a police report obtained by The Beat, the South Bay brothels were established in 2015 and changed locations over the years. The Milpitas brothels were located in an apartment complex at 501 Murphy Ranch Road, with Davies and Hu utilizing a “straw renter” so their names would not appear on the lease. 

Sex workers told police they would service 10 to 15 men a day; the men found the brothels through online advertisements and paid using cash, Venmo, or PayPal. Those running the brothels seized the women’s passports to prevent them from leaving and required them to pay for food, supplies, and medications. 

“People do not have the right to treat other people like pack animals,” Rosen said in a statement. “This county will spare no effort to track down those who exploit others for profit and prosecute them to the fullest extent of the law.”

One woman interviewed by police said she came to the United States to work and help pay her mother’s medical bills back in China. She told investigators that if she tried to leave early, the brothel owner “would be very angry and have some very harsh words” and threaten to blacklist her among other brothel owners. 

The woman said she made $120 per client, with $40 going to the brothel owner. Of her remaining $80, the house would deduct “additional money (house fee) for her food, housing, tip (for the manager) and any medicine or supplies used,” according to the police report.

Deputy District Attorney Patrick Vanier, a member of the DA office’s human exploitation and trafficking task force, told The Beat that the investigation into Davies and Hu is ongoing and that “other associated crimes are still under review.” 

Davies and Hu were booked into Elmwood Correctional Facility in Milpitas on Wednesday and are being held without bail. The couple will be arraigned in court today. 

 

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Grace Hase
Grace Hase
Grace Hase is a Bay Area-based freelance journalist. She previously worked as a reporter for Metro Silicon Valley/San Jose Inside where she covered San Jose City Hall, transportation, housing policy and the Covid-19 pandemic. Grace holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and a Bachelor of Journalism in Investigative Reporting from the University of Missouri-Columbia.

4 COMMENTS

  1. So sad and horrible these women were basically being held captive in our own backyard. The men who used them should be ashamed of themselves.

  2. It should be obvious the difference between an independent escort and a forced sex slave.
    The men that visited this place should be tracked down too and arrested. They are just as guilty knowing that these were poor innocent women
    Being forced. For $120. How do people sleep at night. They should use their hand, jerk off, have a conscious and safe a life. Over 10 men a day? Ugh. Disgusting and appalling
    I hope this disgusting couple gets life behind bars and I’m sure some of those women were underage so add those charges too. Throw their asses in prison. A lot of people in prison hate people like this. Let them swim with the sharks

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