Modugumudi may get 34 years in prison

FEDERAL prosecutors are asking for up to 34 years in prison for a former Indian movie producer who pleaded guilty to running a Chicago-based sex-trafficking ring that lured unsuspecting young actresses from their home country to the US, where authorities said they were forced into prostitution, physically abused and threatened with public shaming if they complained.

Kishan Modugumudi, 42, pleaded guilty in February 2020 to a count of sex trafficking related to one victim. His wife, Chandra, 35, also pleaded guilty to sex trafficking for her role in the scheme, court records show.

US District Judge Virginia Kendall later held a closed-door hearing where she heard directly from some of the Modugumudis' victims, including an actress who testified the couple likely thought none of them would show up to 'talk against them,' prosecutors revealed in a court filing Friday.

‘But yes, we are here,' the woman, identified only as Victim C, told the judge, according to the prosecution filing. ‘Women, we are here, and we are talking against them. We are raising our voice. And we are showing that they did something wrong in their life. They have to feel regret until their death.'

In asking for a sentence of between 27 and 34 years for Kishan Modugumudi, prosecutors said in the filing he was a predator who 'preyed on the hopes and dreams of young, innocent Indian women with dreams of coming to the United States and advancing their careers.'

Prosecutors asked Kendall to sentence Chandra Modugumudi to up to 27 years behind bars.

Both defendants are scheduled to be sentenced on June 24.

Before his arrest, Modugumudi had been a player in the Telugu film industry, co-producing several hit films.

An estimated 200,000 women and children in India are forced into prostitution every year, according to Reuters.