By Tiffany Williams –
The Mass and Cass area of Boston has gained national notoriety for its large homeless population and rampant drug activity. However, amidst the makeshift tents, an even more disturbing discovery was made – a tent being used as a hub for drug and sex trafficking.
According to the United States Attorney for Massachusetts, Jonathan Vaughan, also known as “Ason the Pimp,” operated from a tent at Mass and Cass, preying on women from Boston and Cape Cod. From June 2019 to October 2021, Vaughan recruited and trafficked three female victims for commercial sex acts, even transporting two of them to another state for prostitution. Vaughan proudly displayed a tattoo across his chest that read “Pimp or Die” and created music glorifying his exploitation of women.
The US Attorney’s Office says that from late spring or early summer of 2021 until his arrest in October 2021, Vaughan used his tent at Mass and Cass as a base for drug distribution and the recruitment and trafficking of women. He allowed his sex trafficking victims to stay in the tent and bring clients as long as he received the proceeds from their commercial sex activities. Vaughan recruited victims from Mass and Cass, Downtown Crossing, and online platforms like Facebook. He also brought victims to various locations in Massachusetts, as well as Queens and Manhattan, New York.
Two of Vaughan’s victims were forced to solicit themselves in public areas such as Mass and Cass, Broadway in Chelsea, and around Times Square in Manhattan. The US Attorney’s Office reported that since 2019, Vaughan had subjected his victims to physical and sexual violence to manipulate and control them.
Vaughan was arrested on state charges on October 13, 2021, and at the time of his arrest had 15 bags of cocaine in his possession intended for distribution.
In March 2022, Vaughan was indicted by a federal grand jury, and Thursday, September 9, 2024 he pleaded guilty at the United States District Court in Boston to 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.
Vaughan is scheduled to be sentenced on December 19, 2024.
Members of the public who believe they may be a victim of this crime should contact USAMA.VictimAssistance@usdoj.gov.