{"id":344584,"date":"2021-09-26T20:52:41","date_gmt":"2021-09-26T17:52:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/illegal-massage-parlors-outnumber-starbucks-in-nyc\/"},"modified":"2021-09-26T20:52:41","modified_gmt":"2021-09-26T17:52:41","slug":"illegal-massage-parlors-outnumber-starbucks-in-nyc","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/illegal-massage-parlors-outnumber-starbucks-in-nyc\/","title":{"rendered":"#Illegal massage parlors outnumber Starbucks in NYC"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;<strong>#Illegal massage parlors outnumber Starbucks in NYC<\/strong>&#8221;<\/p>\n<div>\n<aside class=\"single__inline-module alignleft\">\n        <\/aside>\n<p>In one of New York\u2019s toniest neighborhoods, just a few blocks from the Brooklyn federal courthouse, a shady massage parlor is hidden in plain view.<\/p>\n<p>The Ming H<a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/download-scripts-themes-apps\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"9\" title=\"Download Scripts &amp; Themes &amp; Apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">app<\/a>y Spa on Montague Street, conspicuously open until 1 a.m. seven nights a week, is next door to a high-end women\u2019s boutique and operates an innocuous second-floor storefront that sees a steady stream of well-dressed male clientele late into the night.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The alleged illicit massage business in the upscale neighborhood is one of at least 629 others currently operating across the five boroughs \u2014 a network of illegal enterprises so vast, they outnumber Starbucks 2 to 1 citywide, according to data from Heyrick Research.<\/p>\n<p>For every Starbucks that\u2019s in the five boroughs, there are at least two IMBs. In Queens, which has at least 269 open brothels, the illicit businesses outnumber Starbucks 5 to 1, the data from the intelligence-driven counter-trafficking organization that focuses exclusively on the illicit massage industry shows.<\/p>\n<p>Like many other IMBs, the Ming Happy Spa looks innocent enough from Montague Street\u2019s sidewalk. Mainstream chains like UPS and CityMD neighbor the business on the bustling block and stock art of men, women and couples receiving luxurious massages are displayed on the windows alongside the business\u2019s phone number, hours and address.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>But earlier this summer, a local teenager in search of an affordable massage after a boxing session at Gleason\u2019s Gym wandered in and noticed the hallmarks of a place offering more than spa services.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201c[There was] only one woman working there. She asked me what I wanted and I simply said an hour-long back massage,\u201d 17-year-old Matthew Kodsi, who was 16 at the time, told The Post.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe asked me several times if I wanted anything \u2018other than the massage,\u2019 including a shower beforehand. I said no, just the massage.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"682\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/ming-happy-spa-brothel-3.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1024\" alt=\"Ming Happy Spa, which doubles as a brothel, is just one of 629 businesses that operate in plain sight. \" class=\"wp-image-19583235\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/ming-happy-spa-brothel-3.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1535 1536w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/ming-happy-spa-brothel-3.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all 1024w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/ming-happy-spa-brothel-3.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=512 512w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\"\/><figcaption>Ming Happy Spa, which doubles as a brothel, is just one of 629 businesses that operate in plain sight. <\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">William C. Lopez\/NY Post<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Kodsi, whose family has lived in the neighborhood for over 50 years, quickly started to notice other red flags.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe requested payment upfront and tried negotiating a tip, starting at 40 percent, but I requested she keep it at 20 percent. The one-woman show, mixed with the strange negotiations of service and payment, made me uneasy,\u201d the teen explained.<\/p>\n<p>Once Kodsi was on the table, the worker received \u201chalf a dozen calls\u201d during the first 20 minutes from a man she said was inebriated and \u201cbegging for an appointment\u201d and about halfway through the massage, the man burst into the room and demanded services in slurred speech.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"682\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/ming-happy-spa-brothel-1b.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1024\" alt=\"According to recent data, for every Starbucks that's in the five boroughs, there are at least two illicit massage businesses (IMBs).\" class=\"wp-image-19583245\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/ming-happy-spa-brothel-1b.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1535 1536w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/ming-happy-spa-brothel-1b.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all 1024w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/ming-happy-spa-brothel-1b.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=512 512w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\"\/><figcaption>According to recent data, for every Starbucks that\u2019s in the five boroughs, there are at least two illicit massage businesses (IMBs).<\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">Robert Mecea<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cShe told him to wait in the street and he left to go back downstairs. It was very clear to me at that point that this particular parlor had gained a reputation amongst men looking for a certain attention late at night,\u201d Kodsi said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Kodsi\u2019s mother Rachel Foster is the co-founder of the anti-trafficking group World Without Exploitation \u2014 so the teen grew up learning about\u00a0what the sex trade looks like\u00a0and helped start the group\u2019s youth coalition.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen I was in the space, it took me a moment but then I quickly connected the dots,\u201d\u00a0Kodsi said.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"682\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/matthew-kodsi-2.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1024\" alt=\"Matthew Kodsi (right) went to Ming Happy spa not realizing it was a brothel and was asked if he was looking for anything else besides a massage. \" class=\"wp-image-19583253\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/matthew-kodsi-2.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1535 1536w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/matthew-kodsi-2.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all 1024w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/matthew-kodsi-2.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=512 512w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\"\/><figcaption>Matthew Kodsi (right) went to Ming Happy spa not realizing it was a brothel and was asked if he was looking for anything else besides a massage. <\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">William C. Lopez\/NY Post<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cThere seemed to be no issue with teenagers going into the space and paying for whatever \u2018services\u2019 they were offering. If I had not been a WorldWE youth leader, making videos and educating kids about these issues, I\u2019m not sure I would have picked up on what was happening in the way I did,\u201d he continued.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat this establishment does is normalize prostitution and suggest that, for a price, women can be bought by men so long as they have the financial resources to do so \u2026 The money paid for sex doesn\u2019t buy the consent of these women, only their compliance.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The Ming Happy Spa has a heavy online footprint advertising \u201csexy\u201d \u201cfull-body\u201d massages from \u201cbeautiful\u201d \u201cAsian masseuses.\u201d On a popular sex buyer review website, a sort of Yelp for \u201chappy ending\u201d massage businesses, the location has over a dozen reviews, the most recent from Aug. 4.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"823\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/ming-happy-spa-brothel-2.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1024\" alt=\"Ming Happy Spa's seemingly innocent website page. \" class=\"wp-image-19583257\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/ming-happy-spa-brothel-2.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1536 1536w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/ming-happy-spa-brothel-2.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all 1024w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/ming-happy-spa-brothel-2.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=512 512w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\"\/><figcaption>Ming Happy Spa\u2019s seemingly innocent website page. <\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">Arellano, Juan<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>In all of the reviews, the men claim they paid $60 for the massage and between $40 and $50 for the alleged sex act that came at the end and described in repulsive detail what groping they were allowed to do, how skilled the workers were and their overall rating of the experience. When reached by phone, the spa declined comment.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Hundreds of such businesses across the five boroughs, from the Upper East Side to Staten Island, are reviewed on the website and many of them allegedly sell full-service sex, not just post-massage masturbation, the reviews indicate.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Experts told The Post the prevalence of these establishments, and their ability to operate in plain sight with impunity,\u00a0reflects an unofficial, citywide shift toward the decriminalization of the sex trade. It coincided with a push from City Hall and three district attorneys to no longer prosecute people in prostitution because many of them are\u00a0forced into the trade\u00a0either as children or out of economic desperation as adults.\u00a0<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"682\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/matthew-kodsi-1.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1024\" alt=\"Rachel Foster (left) is a co-founder of the anti-trafficking group World Without Exploitation.\" class=\"wp-image-19583261\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/matthew-kodsi-1.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1535 1536w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/matthew-kodsi-1.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all 1024w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/matthew-kodsi-1.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=512 512w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\"\/><figcaption>Rachel Foster (left) is a co-founder of the anti-trafficking group World Without Exploitation.<\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">William C. Lopez\/NY Post<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>While many anti-trafficking advocates, politicians and experts largely agree that people in prostitution shouldn\u2019t be re-victimized with an arrest, they say\u00a0unfettered demand is what keeps pimps and traffickers supplying\u00a0a steady stream of trafficked women for sale and is what keeps the industry thriving.\u00a0There is no indication that the women at Happy Ming were trafficked.<\/p>\n<p>First revealed in\u00a0The Post\u2019s expose of an open-air sex market in East New York, arrests for sex buyers and pimps have all but dried up citywide, according to data from the state Division of Criminal Justice Services. In 2018, there were 1,130 arrests for patronizing a prostitute and promoting prostitution and in 2019, there were 623. By 2020, that number dropped by about 50 percent to 316 and as of July 16, there were just 30 such arrests citywide, the numbers show.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen you remove any veil of accountability, the demand [for sex] is going to go up because now there\u2019s zero fear of consequence. In many ways, by default you are almost putting a stamp of approval and acceptance on it and that to me is alarming,\u201d Chris Muller-Tabanera, the national director of Heyrick Research, told The Post.\u00a0<\/p>\n<aside class=\"single__inline-module alignleft\">\n    <\/aside>\n<p>\u201cWhat I think is often misunderstood in the broader conversation is, yes, we don\u2019t want to keep arresting those who may already be vulnerable or exploited, but by taking all eyes off the industry, you\u2019re giving a free pass to buyers, you\u2019re almost giving your consent to it and [IMB] managers are probably just counting their money like giddy schoolboys.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Mayor Bill de Blasio has been vague about whether he supports full decriminalization, which would legalize the illicit spas and remove penalties for sex buyers, or partial decriminalization, which removes penalties for sex workers but still outlaws sex-buying, pimping and brothel-owning.<\/p>\n<p>In March, the lame-duck mayor\u00a0<a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www1.nyc.gov\/assets\/policereform\/downloads\/PolicingReport_Part%202_FINAL.pdf\">outlined a series of police reforms<\/a>\u00a0that included some proposed changes to how sex work is policed \u2014 but they didn\u2019t specifically address illicit massage businesses or sex buying. Shortly after, the Coalition Against Women in Trafficking\u00a0criticized the proposed policy changes, saying de Blasio is \u201cde facto supporting sex-trade\u00a0decriminalization, which would green-light sex-buying, sex tourism, commercial sex establishments and third-party profiteers.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The NYPD did not return a request for comment seeking more information on the work they\u2019re doing to arrest sex buyers and pimps and shut down IMBs, nor did City Hall.<\/p>\n<p>A spokesperson for the Kings County District Attorney\u2019s Office said they continue to \u201caggressively prosecute traffickers and offers services\u201d to people in the sex trade but noted long-term investigations into the owners of IMBs and undercover operations \u201chave proven challenging for various reasons, including the complex nature of those illegal enterprises.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<aside class=\"single__inline-module alignright\">\n    <\/aside>\n<p>\u201cThe reality is that law enforcement alone cannot effectively address the intractable issue of massage parlors and prostitution; it requires a multi-agency approach or an amended legal framework,\u201d the spokesperson said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIn years past, specific community complaints have led to operations that shuttered some establishments but yielded very few trafficking cases. We have not received similar complaints in recent years.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Yvonne Chen, the director of private sector engagement with the anti-child sex trafficking group ECPAT-USA, spent years working with Chinese women trafficked in IMBs and agreed the industry is incredibly complex and\u00a0differs from traditional sex trafficking.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think it\u2019s important to recognize that America is very westernized, and it is about the individual and it is about my own rights \u2026 but a lot of people are coming from communities, specifically in East Asian culture, [which is centered] around collectivism,\u201d Chen told The Post.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>She said the people who are trafficked in IMBs are often vulnerable immigrants who came to the US so they could make more money for their families or help sick relatives and are often tricked into working at massage businesses under the premise that they are traditional spas.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSo the first, like, first few days might be what they would consider normal, like nothing abnormal happened, they were treated well, everything was kind of fine and then there would be a special customer or an old customer that came in, that then ended up wanting extra services and that\u2019s when a lot of the coercion would happen,\u201d Chen explained.\u00a0<\/p>\n<aside class=\"single__inline-module alignleft\">\n    <\/aside>\n<p>\u201cExploiters or traffickers would say, \u2018Well, you know, this is a customer, like, we want to make sure they\u2019re happy, if they\u2019re not happy, you know, we might take money out\u2019 or \u2018Don\u2019t you want to support your family? This is really the only job\u2019 or they might even threaten to tell their community, things like that and then some people might get assaulted, or raped or harassed and then after that comes a lot of the shame,\u201d she continued.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShame is a word that I feel like in the English term doesn\u2019t necessarily portray how heavy that is for someone \u2026 shame is so heavy and it can really paralyze someone into feeling like they can\u2019t even share anything.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Chen said the level of coercion trafficked women in IMBs face is much more nuanced than traditional trafficking and exploiters don\u2019t need to rely on violence to keep victims under their control. In many instances, they threaten to report them to immigration or their families and tell them the police will deport them if they try to call them.<\/p>\n<p>When police do target IMBs, Chen said oftentimes, there were more arrests for trafficked women than customers, which \u201ccaused a lot of distrust in the community.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>While arresting buyers and traffickers is one way to target the IMB industry, Chen said the people who end up trafficked need more options and services so their vulnerability isn\u2019t targeted by exploiters.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think employment opportunities, living wage opportunities, and things like that should definitely be a focus,\u201d Chen said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou can\u2019t tell someone to leave a situation if you don\u2019t have something else that\u2019s better and I think that\u2019s something that we have to acknowledge as a society.\u201d\u00a0\n                        <\/p><\/div>\n<blockquote><p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMLG0nwswvr63Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">For forums sites go to <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/forum.buradabiliyorum.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Forum.BuradaBiliyorum.Com<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/news\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"2\" title=\"News\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">News<\/a> articles, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/news\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">News category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2021\/09\/26\/illegal-massage-parlors-outnumber-starbucks-in-nyc\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;#Illegal massage parlors outnumber Starbucks in NYC&#8221; In one of New York\u2019s toniest neighborhoods, just a few blocks from the Brooklyn federal courthouse, a shady massage parlor is hidden in plain view. The Ming Happy Spa on Montague Street, conspicuously open until 1 a.m. seven nights a week, is next door to a high-end women\u2019s&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":344585,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/ming-happy-spa-brothel-1c-1.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=1024","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[70897],"tags":[116592,79190,100960,4998,20454,71962,72356],"class_list":["post-344584","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-9-26-21","tag-brooklyn-heights","tag-brothels","tag-crime","tag-human-trafficking","tag-massage","tag-sex-trafficking"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/344584","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=344584"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/344584\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/344585"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=344584"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=344584"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=344584"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}