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Kansas Massage Parlor Owner Seeks Release From Jail

The owner of Asian massage parlors in Wichita has asked a federal judge to release him from prison while he awaits trial.

A magistrate judge ordered the continued detention of Gary H. Kidgell, of Waltham, Mass., earlier this month; The judge ruled he was a flight risk and a danger to the community.

U.S. District Judge Eric Melgren scheduled a hearing Wednesday in Wichita to review that order.

A six-count indictment charges Kidgell; Yan Zhang, of Wichita; and employee Xiuqing Tian, with taking part in a conspiracy from 2009 to 2011.

Court documents accuse them of sharing resources to operate nine massage parlors in Wichita, and of recruiting women and coercing them into prostitution.