Feds: Boston man ran sex trafficking hub out of Mass and Cass tent

BOSTON — A Boston man is facing federal charges in connection with a drug and sex trafficking hub that authorities say was run out of a tent at Massachusetts Avenue and Melnea Cass Boulevard, known as Mass and Cass.

Jonathan Vaughan, 35, known as “Ason,” has been indicted on three counts of sex trafficking by force, fraud and coercion, two counts of transportation of an individual for purposes of prostitution and one count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine, according to the U.S. Attorney’s office.

Federal authorities say Vaughan recruited and trafficked three women to engage in commercial sex acts through threats of force, fraud and coercion. Around October 2021, Vaughan took two of the women to another state for the purposes of prostitution, according to the U.S. Attorney.

Federal authorities say Vaughan was found with 15 bags of cocaine when he was arrested Oct. 13.

“Sex trafficking is a heinous crime that inflicts immeasurable pain and trauma on victims and communities,” U.S. Attorney Rachael Rollins said in part. “Vaughan allegedly preyed on and exploited multiple vulnerable victims, by coercion and by force, to engage in sex acts for his own financial benefit. He profited off of people’s pain.”

Authorities allege Vaughan preyed on women throughout Massachusetts, particularly in Boston and on Cape Cod, dating back to at least 2019. For several months in 2021, Vaughan maintained a tent at Mass and Cass, which he used as a hub for dealing drugs and recruiting and trafficking women, according to the U.S. Attorney.

Federal prosecutors allege Vaughan forced at least two women to solicit themselves in areas like Mass and Cass, Broadway in Chelsea and Times Square in Manhattan, NY. He is also alleged to have taken women to hotels in Boston, Chelsea, Saugus, the Cape and Queens and Manhattan, NY, according court documents.

Vaughan recruited women on Mass and Cass and in Downtown Crossing, as well as over the internet, federal authorities say. Prosecutors allege Vaughan used physical and sexual violence to manipulate and assert control over them.

“Jonathan Vaughan is accused of sexually exploiting vulnerable women through force and coercion, and transporting them to other states,” said Joseph R. Bonavolonta, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division. “Anyone who commits this heinous crime should know the FBI’s Child Exploitation – Human Trafficking Task Force will rigorously pursue them, while providing their victims with the resources they need to recover from the trauma they have suffered.”

Vaughan will make an initial appearance in federal court on April 11.

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