Peru pulls massage parlor's license (VIDEO) | Free | newstrib.com - LaSalle News Tribune

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Peru, didn’t gild the lily, they shut it down with a bright orange sign.

Monday morning, Lily Massage Parlor located on Progress Boulevard in Peru was closed because of what Peru police chief Doug Bernabei described as “a whole host” of ordinance violations.

“I think there were very inappropriate things taking place,” he said. “If they’re not going to follow our rules, they can go back to the suburbs or Chicagoland. I don’t think this place will open again.”


Bernabei said these included zoning violations caused by someone living at the parlor, unlicensed masseuses, violating the hours of operation and possibly more salacious activities, too. The parlor opened in July 2017.

“I’m pulling the license to operate the business,” Bernabei said.

He said he anticipates the license holder will face prosecution for the ordinance violations through Peru’s administrative adjudication system; however, he did not totally rule out more severe criminal charges.

“If they want to get adversarial, it could rise to that level,” Bernabei said.


He said the building’s owner was out of state, but had cooperative, and Peru police were working with a translator fluent in Mandarin to communicate with parlor employees in an attempt to contact the license holder.

The violations were determined after a lengthy, methodical investigation, Bernabei said, and he said customers of the spa were interviewed and video evidence was obtained during the investigation handled by Peru Police Department’s Special Investigations Unit.

“I want to stress this has been a long-term investigation,” Bernabei said.


He said the investigation came about because of many complaints, and he hopes it sends a message to other businesses.

“The city of Peru won’t tolerate much less ignore situations like this,” Bernabei said. “If a business like this plans to operate in Peru the message will be loud and clear and that message is you better conduct your operation within the parameters of the law and city code.”

Ben Hohenstatt can be reached at (815) 220-6932 or [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @NT_Peru.

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