Woman running local massage parlor arrested on suspicion of human trafficking
Published at
POCATELLO — The “Boss” at a 4th Avenue massage parlor has been arrested and charged with sex crimes.
Liyun Ma, 43, faces one count of procurement for prostitution, court records show.
Member of the Pocatello Police Department Street Crimes Unit served a search warrant at the Lucky 7 Massage parlor on South 4th Avenue around 10 a.m. Wednesday, according to an affidavit of probable cause. The warrant was obtained after a six-month investigation into the business for prostitution and human trafficking.
While searching the property, officers found two women.
One of the women, Ma, was arrested and taken to Bannock County Jail. The other was turned over to Idaho Community Outreach Behavioral Services (COBS), a support service for victims and survivors of human trafficking.
In the presence of a social worker from COBS, officers interviewed the second woman.
The woman said she was brought to Pocatello from China, by way of New York, to work at the massage parlor. She said she did not want to be in Pocatello.
She told police she referred to Ma as “Boss.” Ma, she added, would become angry if she did not do what Ma wanted — including removing pieces of clothing and touching clients sexually.
Ma held her money — $3,600 — because, as the woman said, Ma said it was unsafe for her to have that much cash.
Officers tried to interview Ma, but she requested an attorney.
She was booked into the Bannock County Jail on suspicion of human trafficking. She has not yet been charged for trafficking, though. She is being held on a $250,000 bond.
Though Ma has been accused of these crimes, it does not necessarily mean she committed them. Everyone is presumed innocent until they are proven guilty.
If she is found guilty of procuring a prostitute, Ma would face up to 20 years in prison.
She is scheduled to appear in court before Magistrate Judge David Penrod for a preliminary hearing on March 19.