Alameda County DA leads big bust of East Bay 'massage parlors' for pimping - San Jose

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OAKLAND -- Thirteen brothels masquerading as massage parlors in Oakland, San Leandro, Hayward and San Lorenzo were raided and shut down Friday as part of a multiagency prostitution sweep six months in the making.
More than 400 local, state and federal law enforcement officers executed 32 search warrants in Alameda, Contra Costa, Santa Clara, San Mateo, Solano and Sonoma counties, yielding the arrests of 18 individuals from five organized crime organizations. A 19th person is at large.
Alameda County District Attorney Nancy O'Malley said officers are currently interviewing at least 50 women, all Asian, to determine what level of sex trafficking, labor trafficking and exploitation occurred.
Three of the 13 parlors shut down have been determined to have also been involved in drug trafficking, including large-scale marijuana grows, O'Malley said.
The investigation, coordinated by the DA's Office and the Alameda County Sheriff's Office, was launched in response to complaints from residents of unincorporated Alameda County and San Leandro about businesses that were fronts for prostitution.
The DA's Office on Friday issued five criminal complaints against the 19 suspects, charging a total of 107 felonies and four misdemeanors. Sixty counts relate to pimping and pandering, and 51 relate to tax evasion and labor code violations.
"The growth of these types of establishments that claim to be massage parlors or nail spas ... has become an ever-increasing problem in Alameda County as well as surrounding counties," O'Malley said. "What we've been able to accomplish today is to attack these businesses in an innovative and comprehensive manner."
The defendants are scheduled to be arraigned in Oakland on Tuesday. Their properties and assets have been seized, and O'Malley said her office will be serving them motions that requires them to prove that any money they try to use for bail is not from illegal gains.
"With today's operation we are sending a strong message that this type of illicit behavior is not acceptable in our communities and that we will investigate, arrest and prosecute offenders who engage in not only this type of activity, but in activity that involves human trafficking, sex trafficking, labor trafficking and other forms of exploitative behavior.
The businesses shut down as part of Friday's operation are: May's Body and Skin Care at 333 13th St. and at 320 10th St., Qi Massage at 3623 Macarthur Blvd., and Crystal Spa at 15998 E. 14th St. in Oakland; Wei Massage at 20955 Foothill Blvd., Massage Cafe at 571 Jackson St., and Chi Thi Massage at 21003 Mission Blvd. in Hayward; Family Foot Spa at 367 Bancroft Ave. in San Leandro; Ming's Spa at 676 Brockman Road, Natina's Spa at 17685 Hesperian Blvd., Mini Spa at 15600 Washington Ave., May's Spa at 17940 Hesperian Blvd., and Oriental Healing Center at 15919 Hesperian Blvd. in San Lorenzo.
Contact Malaika Fraley at 925-234-1684. Follow her at Twitter, com/malaikafraley.