Kirkcaldy brothel madam fights bid to seize £250,000

Chin Chih Chang was convicted last year (2018) of running a vice den in a luxury waterfront apartment block in Kirkcaldy.

She insisted she was a professional masseuse and had “no idea” the scantily clad young Asian women she employed were selling sex to her clients.

But in reality Chang (54) was selling sex through ads on Gumtree to local punters who paid between £80 and £110 a time for sessions at their home or in the flat in the upmarket Lord Gambier Wharf development in Kirkcaldy’s harbour district.

Chang dodged a jail term over the scheme following an at-times comical trial last year – but prosecutors have launched confiscation proceedings under the Proceeds of Crime Act in a bid to recover cash earned through the illicit business.

Kirkcaldy Sheriff Court heard that her lawyers were still combing through her bank accounts to prepare her case, prior to a three-day “proof” hearing in December at which a sheriff will decide how much she should repay.

Her solicitor Martin Maguire told the preliminary hearing: “We are in the process of obtaining further information in relation to a number of accounts, and transactions to and from those accounts.

“We have asked Miss Chang to provide certain further information, and she is in the process of gathering that.”

Sheriff Alison McKay continued the case to a further pre-proof hearing, to ensure preparations are complete for the proof itself, scheduled to start on December 3rd.

Chang, who now lives in genteel Hove, Sussex, was ordered to return to the Kirkcaldy court on November 12th for the pre-proof hearing.

Her trial last year (2018) saw jurors and lawyers frequently descend into laughter as a series of punters gave evidence about their time at Chang’s brothel .

One told how he’d received a “Brucie Bonus” when a scantily clad woman gave him an “unexpected happy ending” after his back rub.

A police officer later told how he found a customer engaging in sex acts with a woman during a raid on the property – describing him as “cocky”.

But Chang insisted she was running a legitimate business - and said that £30,000 in dirty money she had transferred to her native Taiwan was cash for her son.

Asked if she knew why the male clients would ask if other women were available when they turned up she said: “Some people want noodles today and rice tomorrow.”

PC Kevin Daglish told the court how he entered a room at the flat, which had initially been blocked by Chang, and found witness Alasdair McIntosh with his “buttocks in the air”.

“I observed his buttocks in the air and underneath him was a female with her legs wrapped around him.

“I told him to get off and get up. He rolled off the female and has stood up.

“I would have expected him to have tried to cover up but he just stood there with a grin on his face as if he wasn’t bothered about the scenario.

“I had to tell him to go and get dressed. He walked with no shame, arrogantly. He was quite cocky.”

Mr McIntosh had earlier told the trial he had responded to a Gumtree advert and gone to the flat for a massage on his “sore back” - but had received an “unexpected bonus”.

Prospective client Andrew Wilson said he had arranged appointments by text with Chang - and received a reply offering “the girlfriend experience” or a “naked massage” but had arranged to pay £40 for a non-sexual service.

James Saunders later told how he had handed £80 to Chang before receiving a “topless massage” from a young Asian woman.

Chang, of Eaton Road, Hove, had denied charges of keeping or managing a brothel at the flat in Lord Gambier Whard, Kirkcaldy, between April 18, 2016 and May 31, 2017.

But she was convicted following a five-day trial and sentenced to a community payback order with 300 hours unpaid work and a year-long 8pm to 6am tag-monitored curfew.

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