A Topeka man accused of running a large human trafficking ring out of a strip club in Lawrence was sentenced to almost four years in federal prison Monday.
Forty-three-year-old Frank Boswell had pleaded guilty to one count of human trafficking.
The government said he would lure women in desperate circumstances into his sex ring that he ran out of Club Magic, near 24th and Alabama in Lawrence.
Boswell walked into court prepared to spend at least the next 51 months in prison.
But at the last minute, the government asked for less time. U.S. District Judge Daniel Crabtree told Boswell "he committed a very serious criminal act" but agreed to the shorter sentence and sentenced Boswell to prison for 46 months. He was immediately handcuffed by U.S. Marshals and taken into custody.
Boswell was dressed in dark slacks, a dress shirt and vest. Half the courtroom at the federal courthouse in Topeka was packed with his relatives and supporters.
Boswell performed hip-hop under the name Benefyshal and began his speech before the court with "mic check, one, two," drawing a small chuckle from the crowd and a little smile from the judge. Boswell quickly turned serious, apologizing to his family for being a burden and to the entire state of Kansas for his years of human trafficking.
"I have no excuses," Boswell told the court. "I know it was wrong. I know it was immoral."
The government said Boswell was managing up to 20 prostitutes at a time out of Club Magic. "Members of the organization identified single mothers, females with drug problems, or females living in shelters," says the plea deal the U.S. Attorney's office filed with the court. "For example, TW, a single mother, was living in a homeless shelter. The defendant (Boswell) told TW that he would take care of her if she worked for him."
In addition to his almost four years in prison, Boswell was fined $5,000 under the federal Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act passed two years ago.
Sam Zeff covers education for KCUR and the Kansas News Service and is co-host of the political podcast Statehouse Blend Kansas. Follow him on Twitter @SamZeff.
