Atlantic City-area massage parlors listed in state report on potential human trafficking - Press of Atlantic City

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Three people who operated massage businesses in Atlantic and Cumberland counties were named in a state report that investigated questionable business practices, including alleged human trafficking.


The State Commission of Investigation examined 250 massage businesses throughout the state and concluded the establishments manipulated laws that govern the industry, concealed certain business activities and exploited female workers.


“All of the questionable massage businesses examined during the inquiry were registered with state or local government entities or had taken deliberate actions to appear otherwise legitimate,” the report states. “State government oversight strictly regulates massage therapists but minimally oversees businesses, owners, and operators. The Commission found that the weak and fragmented statutory and regulatory framework that underpins the industry was subverted in some instances, enabling corrupt operators to engage in unlawful conduct, including fraud and tax evasion, without detection.”

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The report concluded that some businesses showed signs of human trafficking as there was evidence of females living in establishments and many buildings had darkened windows. It also was determined that several operators used only cash and reported little taxable income to live luxurious lifestyles.


In Atlantic City, an anonymous source told the state they couldn’t pay back money they lost gambling and a man had offered them a job at a massage parlor after the individual borrowed more than $100,000 from the man between 2021 and 2022.


The person, who didn’t have a massage license, worked at Suns Spa on Atlantic Avenue and testified that when customers came to the business, they would be escorted into private rooms by the owner before a female would come in and collect a $60 initial payment or $65 for a massage.


“If the customer requested sexual services, the costs would escalate depending on the service,” the individual told investigators in the report. “The female employees kept the remaining money charged for sexual services but had to share any tips with management. Each week, the women were required to pay $500 to the owner, which included food and other personal necessities, and another $140 to the manager, keeping the rest for themselves.”






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Chun Yong Evans operated the Evergreen Spa in Pleasantville and Rainbow Spa in Vineland. However, Michael DeMaria was listed as the owner of Evergreen instead of Evans, who served a federal prison sentence in 2008 for conspiracy, prostitution and human trafficking.


DeMaria helped Evans receive a $30,000 loan during the COVID-19 pandemic for one of the spas registered in DeMaria’s name, but Evans allegedly took the funds to open unrelated business, the report states.


DeMaria assisted Evans by filling out the necessary paperwork for the businesses, the report states. DeMaria was the registered agent of Rainbow, while Evans was the agent for a separate massage business in Mays Landing. But investigators determined DeMaria’s address was under Evans’ name.


“This discrepancy raises legal implications and questions the legitimacy of their business operations,” the report states.


DeMaria told investigators he was working as a dealer in an Atlantic City casino when he met Evans and although he was aware of her criminal record, he filled out the paperwork as a favor.


DeMaria was the registered agent when Rainbow opened in May 2014. He testified that he stopped interacting with the business in 2019, but records indicate he remained active with it as recently as June of this year.


He was cited by the Vineland Fire Department on two occasions in 2019 after a room filled with mattresses was found on a floor in the business.






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Evans’ business practices allowed her and her husband to deposit more than $486,000 into bank accounts. She also gambled away more than $750,000 at Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa, Golden Nugget Atlantic City and Ocean Casino Resort, according to the report.


To open Evergreen, Evans said she borrowed a massage license from James Yoo, who rented his license to several businesses, pocketing thousands of dollars in the process. Some businesses connected to Yoo were linked to prostitution and human trafficking.


He was charged with promoting prostitution in 2021 following an undercover operation in Sayreville, Middlesex County. The charges were dismissed after he entered a pretrial intervention program and completed a year of court supervision.


Yoo’s wife, Yun Ok Heo, was listed as the owner of the massage business Min 8888 Corp. in Atlantic City. However, she claimed she never worked as a massage therapist or had ever been to the establishment.


“I mean, that’s under my name,” Heo testified. “This person asked for help with the licensing, so that’s the name of it, but I’ve never been there.”


The commission is recommending reforming the licensing mechanism to include businesses and their ownership as well as making the penalties stricter for those who benefit from promoting prostitution and human trafficking.


“The findings illuminate seemingly innocuous conditions that have persisted unmonitored and contravene law enforcement and advocacy norms around the detection and prevention of human trafficking,” Tiffany Williams Brewer, commission chair, said in a statement. “The reforms proposed by the SCI directly address vulnerabilities in our regulatory structure that will improve the massage industry and eradicate abuses, positioning New Jersey to lead nationally in preventing the victimization of women working in the massage industry.”



Contact John O’Connor:

609-272-7261

[email protected]

Twitter @acpressoconnor

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