Authorities have said that a Canadian man has pleaded guilty to running a Thailand brothel catering to American tourists seeking sex with boys, some as young as 4.

The Department of Justice said in a release on Wednesday that John Wrenshall, 63, said he invited sex tourists to his home outside Bangkok and let them videotape themselves abusing young children.

The DOJ also said that thousands of men visit Thailand each year to have sex with children, officials say, and Wrenshall allegedly began operating his brothel as early as 2000.

Officials have said that Wrenshall came under federal investigation after a New Jersey man, Wayne Nelson Corliss, 60, was arrested in 2008 for traveling to the brothel. Records from Corliss' home computer led investigators to six other men, including Wrenshall.

The DOJ further said that three of Wrenshall's U. S. clients -- Corliss, Burgess Lee Burgess and Mitchell Kent Jackson -- pleaded guilty and were sentenced on sex tourism and related charges.

It was further revealed by the DOJ release that Wrenshall faces a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison for conspiracy to engage in sex tourism, a maximum of 20 years for conspiracy to produce child pornography and 15 years for distribution of child pornography. (With Inputs from Agencies)