Shuttered massage parlor was a brothel, Irmo police say
Irmo police are asking the town to shut down a massage parlor that officers say was operating as a brothel.
Police have closed down the Spring Foot and Body Massage on Woodrow Street after an investigation confirmed sexual activity was taking place on the premises, said Irmo Police Chief Courtney Dennis. Officers cited owner Sui Yu Ying, 58, on June 24 with operating a brothel, a misdemeanor in South Carolina.
Irmo Town Council on Tuesday will hear a motion to permanently suspend the massage parlor’s business license.
Dennis told The State officers had been investigating the business for some time, after receiving an anonymous complaint about prostitution at the business.
An investigation was launched after Irmo police received the complaint in 2019, but the COVID-19 shutdown impaired officers’ ability to investigate at the parlor until later. An undercover operation later confirmed sexual activity was taking place, Dennis said. The massage parlor’s business license with the town of Irmo has been suspended pending the town council’s ruling, the police chief said.
Attempts to reach the owner of Spring Foot and Body Massage were not successful Tuesday afternoon. It’s unclear if she has an attorney.
This story was originally published July 20, 2021 at 1:33 PM.
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