'Very well connected': Massage parlor sting revealed a network of prostitution, trafficking There's not enough evidence to point to organized crime, but police said the six charged were well connected

Capt. Mike Edwards and Deputy Chief Marc Garth Green brief reporters about an arrest made Feb. 28, 2019 of five people in connection with promoting prostitution in several illicit massage parlors and spas. Capt. Mike Edwards and Deputy Chief Marc Garth Green brief reporters about an arrest made Feb. 28, 2019 of five people in connection with promoting prostitution in several illicit massage parlors and spas. Photo: Courtesy Of Seattle Police Department Photo: Courtesy Of Seattle Police Department Image 1 of / 92 Caption Close 'Very well connected': Massage parlor sting revealed a network of prostitution, trafficking 1 / 92 Back to Gallery

It started with a few complaints from the community. Men were seen walking in and out of a building -- after spending about 15 minutes inside -- that appeared to be a massage parlor.

While police thought it was an individual "illicit sex parlor," an investigation of the business brought on a bigger dive into the operation.

The dive -- performed over three years by the Seattle Police Department -- involved Seattle VICE detectives, the Department of Homeland Security, the FBI and the King County Prosecutor's Office in an investigation called "Operation Emerald Triangle."

After the investigation, authorities orchestrated a simultaneous arrest of five of the people on Feb. 28, Capt. Mike Edwards, of VICE unit, said Friday at a news conference.

Charges were filed Monday against six people -- operating at least 11 massage parlors and spas -- on 12 counts of second-degree prostitution promotion and one count of money laundering.

"It's our belief that this is very well connected," Edwards said. "We were able to identify prime suspects who were Chinese nationalists and in this local area were running the operations, but were connected to other parts of the country."

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Edwards told SeattlePI that because of the scope of the parlors, the legitimate business licenses operators had obtained and other evidence, he felt comfortable calling this a network.

Charging documents indicated that two people operated several parlors, three operated several others and one other person operated two parlors.

Twenty-six Asian women were found in the massage parlors and spas, ranging in age from 20 to 60. They weren't from the U.S. and were lured here on promises of good wages, a place to live and opportunities to do what they wanted.

When they got here, they were coerced to work in the parlors, and sexually exploited for up to 20 hours a day, Deputy Chief Marc Garth Green said.

Some were forced to live in the parlors or apartments owned by the massage parlors' operators, most of the time in horrible, fetid conditions.

"Squalor is a nice word," Edwards said when asked about the living and working conditions for the women. "There was a lot of soiled linen. The massage tables themselves -- that often women were forced to sleep on -- were soiled and disgusting.

"We found animal feces in several locations. It was the women's responsibility to not only work there, live there, but keep it clean because the people who were running this really had no regard for their health."

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Six women were found living in a single room in "Henan Spa" at 416 8th Ave. S operated by Xinzhong Wang, 67 and Liuzhen Mou, 63, court documents said. They were allegedly paid $360 a month each.

Edwards said the operators were making huge profits off the spas, all while deducting pay from the employees by way of "fees" and rent. He said the women weren't aware of how much money was being brought in, but they didn't see much of it.

Interviews by detectives with some of the women -- through linguists provided by the FBI -- alleged that women were physically and sexually assaulted at the massage parlors. One woman told detectives that one of the operators, Wei Zhang, 49, would beat employees for "talking too much."

The Seattle Police Department is now working to get resources for the women. Edwards said they won't be deported if they want to stay.

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Some of the alleged victims can't be found, Edwards said. They may have left and gone back to their countries, but the police department is looking to provide them with resources if needed.

Seattle has several non profit organizations that work to provide support and resources for victims of sex trafficking and prostitution.

Organization for Prostitution Survivors, led and founded by Noel Gomez, is a support group that provides a community for those trafficked or who feel trapped by prostitution. Gomez told SeattlePI that their motto is: "Being here for them, no matter what."

"It's about helping them get stable with where they're at," Gomez said. They don't try to get people out of the trade per se, but provide resources like housing, funding, chemical dependency support and case management for them if they need it.

"If they want out of it, we'll help them. We're always there."

The number for the National Human Trafficking Hotline is 1-888-373-7888.

SeattlePI reporter Alex Halverson can be reached at alex.halverson@seattlepi.com. Follow him on Twitter @AlexHalversonPI. Find more from Alex here.