A civil pre-suit petition has been filed against a local spa for alleged illicit activities.
Red Rose Spa is under the spotlight after the City of Plano and the Plano Police Department filed a 53-page petition for pre-suit discovery.
Located at 1301 Cluster Road, Mayelob James and Ji Won Lee are “believed to be engaging in illicit activities, criminal conduct, and lewd behavior under the guise of a massage establishment, advertising the sale of young girls, attracting deviant clientele, and placing the community in danger,” per a City news release.
“Unsuspecting citizens are going about their daily lives under the false impression that they are living in a typical suburban area while an enterprise suited for a red-light district, its prostitutes, and its customers lurk nearby. Red Rose Spa is a sex broker hiding in plain sight,” the petition reads.
Following Rule 202 of the Texas Rules of Civil Procedure, the City of Plano is seeking court-authorized pre-suit discovery to obtain detailed information to determine ownership or responsibility for the alleged sex trade.
This action allows city officials to investigate and possibly sue owners, landlords, employees, and customers who engage in these types of illegal activities.
“The Plano Police Department is dedicated to reducing prostitution offenses and related sex crimes and will use all available means — criminally as well as civilly — to protect the community and bring those who profit from these types of illegal activities to justice,” the news release reads.
In February, the salon’s owner James was arrested and charged with prostitution as well as acting as a massage therapist without a license. Back in May, Plano police arrested Jie Dieng, an employee of the spa, for prostitution.
The arrests are part of Plano’s initiative to combat sex crimes.
“The City of Plano is committed to putting an end to prostitution and other sex crimes that threaten law-abiding citizens and children, including using all available means to uncover profiteers as well as purchasers,” the petition reads.
In November, Plano filed a similar petition against Tennyson Wellness Center, as previously covered by The Dallas Express.
The investigation was launched after police received several reports that massage therapists had inappropriately touched customers and offered sexual favors for money. This investigation led to the salon voluntarily closing its doors in April.
“In the past, we were writing misdemeanors to the person, and so it would get paid, and they would go back to work. Obviously, they did not understand that we weren’t going away, and so this was our pivot,” Jennifer Chapman, sworn public information officer for Plano Police Department, told DX. “I think that these [suits] will continue as long as people do not understand that we’re serious about it.”
Plano is not the only city dealing with prostitution, as Dallas has been facing this ongoing problem as well.
As of April 10, Dallas has reported 29 prostitution offenses, 70 purchasing prostitution offenses, and 20 offenses for assisting or promoting prostitution so far in 2024, according to the City of Dallas crime analytics dashboard. The City of Dallas had a total of 580 prostitution-related crimes reported in 2023.
In March, the Dallas Police Department arrested 30 people for allegedly soliciting sex from a prostitute, as covered by DX.
“There are 400+ escort sites servicing the Dallas area; it’s near impossible to count them all,” Stacey Montgomery, president of Shepherd’s Watch Foundation, previously told DX.
