San Diego police are working to bring ‘peace and civility back to San Diego neighborhoods’ after prostitution bust
“Sexual noises” emanating from a San Diego massage parlor, disturbing nearby church services, led to a police sting operation that exposed a sex-for-pay operation in the Southern California city, as revealed by police last week.
Police Chief Nisleit stated in a press release, “The San Diego Police Department takes neighborhood complaints of this nature very seriously. Our Vice Unit’s thorough investigation into the operation at businesses just like Ocean Spa brings peace and civility back to San Diego neighborhoods. We are grateful for the collaboration with the City Attorney to eliminate this type of criminal conduct in our communities.”
Police received multiple complaints from neighboring business owners and residents regarding the Ocean Spa Massage Parlor, prompting them to initiate an operation at the location. Complaints included “sexual noises” disrupting a church service and reports of individuals engaging in sexual activities in cars, as stated by the police. It was mentioned that a youth Bible study group was previously situated next to the parlor, according to CBS8.
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“Neighboring businesses complained that the site was the source of foot traffic at odd hours, people engaging in intercourse in parked cars, and sexual noises loud enough to disrupt a nearby church service. After receiving numerous community complaints regarding illicit sexual activities at Ocean Spa, including criminal, nuisance, and lewd activities, SDPD’s Vice Unit initiated an extensive and thorough investigation into these complaints,” reported San Diego police.
Police dedicated over 125 hours of investigation last year into the massage parlor, which resulted in at least four instances where undercover officers were offered sex by employees. Additionally, police uncovered at least 1,270 online advertisements for sexual services at the parlor over the last five years.
Four individuals were arrested for prostitution, and the city is pursuing legal action to close down the parlor. The City Attorney’s Office is seeking more than $100,000 in civil penalties along with reimbursement for attorney fees and law enforcement costs.
“The owners of Ocean Spa have been masquerading as a legitimate business for far too long,” stated City Attorney Mara Elliott in the press release. “Ocean Spa is a sex shop – not a massage parlor – and it has no place in our community or anywhere else. We look forward to holding these perpetrators accountable and restoring peace in this complex.”
San Diego and its surrounding areas have faced ongoing challenges with prostitution issues, and some locals and Californians contend that a relatively recent law has worsened the problem.
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In July 2022, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 357, repealing a previous law that prohibited loitering with the intent to engage in prostitution. The bill was championed to protect transgender women from being targeted by law enforcement.
“The author brought forth this legislation because the crime of loitering has disproportionately impacted Black and brown women and members of the LGBTQ community,” stated the governor when signing the bill into law.
“To be clear, this bill does not legalize prostitution. It simply revokes provisions of the law that have led to disproportionate harassment of women and transgender adults. While I agree with the author’s intent, and I am signing this legislation, we must be cautious about its implementation. My administration will monitor crime and prosecution trends for any possible unintended consequences and will act to mitigate any such impacts.”
The law came into effect in January of last year, and business owners and local leaders have argued that it emboldened prostitutes and pimps to roam city streets for clients with few repercussions.
A local San Diego business owner, who spoke to Fox News Digital anonymously following the massage parlor bust, stated that although prostitution and massage parlors offering sex have “always been pretty common,” SB 357 emboldened pimps and prostitutes. The business owner is not located directly near the massage parlor but approximately 20 minutes away, where prostitutes openly walk the streets in revealing outfits, seeking clients.
“It’s always been pretty common with massage parlors to offer more than massages,” the business owner said, “but with [SB] 357, the whole industry is emboldened because they know nothing will happen.”
The business owner argued that sex trafficking has also increased due to the law. “Now that we’re starting the second year with SB 357 in place, prostitution has steadily increased, pimps know they can flood the streets with more girls, and with the busiest border crossing here in San Diego, sex trafficking is out of control.”
“To be clear, this bill does not legalize prostitution. It simply revokes provisions of the law that have led to disproportionate harassment of women and transgender adults. While I agree with the author’s intent, and I am signing this legislation, we must be cautious about its implementation. My administration will monitor crime and prosecution trends for any possible unintended consequences and will act to mitigate any such impacts.”
The law came into effect in January of last year, and business owners and local leaders have argued that it emboldened prostitutes and pimps to roam city streets for clients with few repercussions.
A local San Diego business owner, who spoke to Fox News Digital anonymously following the massage parlor bust, stated that although prostitution and massage parlors offering sex have “always been pretty common,” SB 357 emboldened pimps and prostitutes. The business owner is not located directly near the massage parlor but approximately 20 minutes away, where prostitutes openly walk the streets in revealing outfits, seeking clients.
“It’s always been pretty common with massage parlors to offer more than massages,” the business owner said, “but with [SB] 357, the whole industry is emboldened because they know nothing will happen.”
The business owner argued that sex trafficking has also increased due to the law. “Now that we’re starting the second year with SB 357 in place, prostitution has steadily increased, pimps know they can flood the streets with more girls, and with the busiest border crossing here in San Diego, sex trafficking is out of control.”
Meanwhile, prostitutes are becoming more “aggressive,” the business owner said, highlighting instances where women enter businesses and confront employees.
“They’ll say, ‘I’ll call my pimp, and he’ll come take care of this,'” the prostitutes threaten business owners, according to the San Diego proprietor.
“Residents attempting to park in a street parking spot where a prostitute is standing may face refusal to move and verbal abuse,” the business owner continued. “When a client stops in the middle of the street to negotiate and causes traffic backup, the cars behind may honk their horns, prompting the prostitute to approach, yelling, and even striking the car or window.”
Other parts of California have also reported recurring instances of prostitutes walking the streets in revealing outfits during daylight hours. In Oakland, pimps reportedly stationed prostitutes outside a Catholic grade school last year. Additionally, a road in the heart of San Francisco’s Mission District was lined with prostitutes and pimps last winter.