New charges filed for massage therapist accused of touching clients - Deseret News

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SALT LAKE CITY — A massage therapist already facing charges of inappropriately touching a client and who surrendered his license to practice more than two years ago has been charged again.

Francisco Fernandez, 41, of Salt Lake City, was charged Friday in 3rd District Court with two counts of forcible sexual abuse, a second-degree felony.


On July 7, a woman said she saw Fernandez, who was at Deep Tissue and Structural Healing, 561 W. 200 South, to be treated for a neck injury, according to charging documents. But during her massage, Fernandez touched the woman's chest, the charges state.

The woman "spoke up and told Fernandez that no one had ever massaged her (chest)," according to court documents.

Fernandez then had the woman flip over and inappropriately touched her again while massaging one of her legs, the charges state. After the woman said something again, Fernandez ended the woman's session 15 minutes early and told her it was "on the house," according to court documents.

The incident is very similar to another reported incident from 2017. Fernandez was charged in that case with two counts of forcible sexual abuse, a second-degree felony, for two alleged incidents with a woman in 2015 and 2016.

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In 2015, the woman said Fernandez inappropriately touched her during a massage, then left the room for a minute, returned and told her, "This one's on the house," according to charging documents.

In 2016, the woman returned to be treated for a neck injury. Fernandez had the woman completely undress and touched her genitals during the massage, the charges state. Fernandez surrendered his license to practice massage therapy shortly after that incident, according to charging documents.


A pretrial conference for that case is scheduled for March 1.

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