SAN DIEGO -- Two Mexican men who illegally brought their wives into the United States and forced them to work as prostitutes out of a Vista apartment the couples shared have been sentenced to federal prison terms.

U.S. District Judge Thomas Whelan Monday sentenced Guillermo Romero-Flores to 27 months in custody and Guadalupe Ventura to a 41-month term.

Romero-Flores, 45, had been directing his wife's prostitution activity since about 1993, and Ventura, 29, had been using his spouse for the same purpose since about 1997, said Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher Tenorio.

The judge found that the women were themselves victims who were afraid of their husbands.

"The defendants didn't just smuggle aliens, they victimized them," said U.S. Attorney Carol Lam. "Our local Human Trafficking Task Force will continue to identify and prosecute people who exploit others in this way."

On May 13, 2005, a jury convicted both defendants of two counts each of harboring aliens and harboring aliens for purposes of prostitution.

The jury also convicted Ventura of one count each of bringing in an alien for financial gain and transporting an alien for purposes of prostitution.