Tacoma councilman taking a stand after prostitution ring uncovered at city massage parlors...

[massage]

Multiple massage parlors in Tacoma along Pacific Avenue and 38th St South have been closed by the city.


TACOMA, Wash. -- A multi-agency prostitution sting led by the Tacoma Police department forced the closure of several illegal massage parlors.

Seven massage parlors in Tacoma and two in Lakewood were boarded up by authorities this week.

The two ring leaders made an appearance in a Pierce County courtroom on Friday. Aiqin Jiang and Liang Shi each charged with seven counts of promoting prostitution and one count of organized crime. Jiang was also charged with two counts of soliciting prostitution.

"We don't want Tacoma to be a part of human trafficking, we don't want Washington to be a part of human trafficking," said Tacoma City Councilman Marty Campbell.

Campbell said the undercover investigation began months ago, thanks to tips from concerned citizens.

"I heard from neighbors that they are operating at all hours of the day," said Campbell. "They wondered what was going on."

Don Reef who lived across the street from two of the illegal businesses said he had a perfect view.

"Weird hours, always late at night and it was always guys," said Reeff. "Never seen women going in for foot massages, mostly men."

Along with the arrest of Jiang and Shi, several woman who were forced to work in the shops were arrested, however the victims will also receive assistance from local agencies.

"The women are brought in and they live in the building and they will make 10 dollars a day," said Campbell. "They are basically kept in a state of being held hostage. It is a form of slavery, modern day slavery."

Campbell now says he plans on introducing a law to make it difficult for massage parlors to operate at night. One idea, to limit business hours from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m.

"At two or three in the morning the massage that people are looking for isn't the massage that most masseuse go to school for," said Campbell.

The Tacoma City Council next meets on Tuesday, September 13th.

Supporting agencies included: FBI, ATF, Homeland Security Investigations, South Sound Child Exploitation Task Force (SSCETF), Missing & Exploited Children’s Task Force (MECTF), Washington State Patrol, Pierce County Sheriff’s Office, Lakewood Police Department, Seattle Police Department, Federal Protective Service, Department of Corrections, Pierce County Prosecutor’s Office, Kitsap County Prosecutor’s Office, Attorney General’s Office, and Yes to Hope community advocacy center.

Code enforcement also assisted with boarding up the businesses. Four of the massage parlors face electrical violations, three massage parlors were cited for construction issues.


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