Police also detained and released a male customer.Ĭode enforcement officers said they found several violations and plan to work with the landlord to shut the spa down.
"When you have this type of criminal activity going on, it's a detriment to a safe and happy environment," Bertagna said.A bead of sweat fell from Jim R.’s forehead as he gazed with pain in his eyes at one of his local massage parlors in Lake Forest, Calif. “The massage therapist women will say they’re from Asia and that they need money and more tips. “I found out about these special parlors through links on pornographic websites, and I think at this point every city in SoCal has them now.” They then, they will tell me how much I will give them as they point to my groin area,” Jim, whose name has been changed to protect his identity, told The Epoch Times. Jim, who is disabled, started using illicit massage parlors (IMP) offering prostitution services in January 2021. Many of these IMPs have a high probability of using women who are victims of sex trafficking. In recent years, researchers have reported that 80 percent of human trafficking victims in the United States end up in Orange County. The county’s financial affluence makes it a destination for vacationers and creates a high demand on the sex industry. These prostitution operations often shield themselves within massage parlor fronts that have legal business licenses and legitimate massage therapy certifications. “One of the parlors I’ve is right above a busy Starbucks,” said Jim. “Men pull up to that massage place in nice cars and just take off a half hour later and go home. Websites freely tell you where these places are, and I feel guilty. I hate myself and my addiction for going.” Jim R. places his hands on a chain-link fence in Lake Forest, Calif., on Aug.
(John Fredricks/The Epoch Times)Ī 2019 Heyrick Research report ( pdf) assessed that more than 84 percent of illicit massage parlor businesses have management and victim workers (VW) who originate from mainland China. Many of these businesses also commonly use workers from Vietnam, Korea, and Thailand.