EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) – The County Attorney’s Office announced on Thursday, June 26, the permanent closure of a massage parlor near the El Paso International airport as part of a settlement agreement with the owners of the establishment.
The agreement involving Oriental Massage Spa, 6301 Airport Road, comes after a “lengthy investigation into repeated illegal activity and violations of Texas law,” the Attorney’s Office said in a news release.
The Attorney’s Office said the County’s investigation revealed that the massage parlor routinely offered illegal erotic services and employed unlicensed massage therapists.
Investigators also found regulatory violations, including a lack of required employee and client records. Law enforcement conducted multiple undercover operations earlier this year that confirmed these findings, the Attorney’s Office said.
The Attorney’s Office said the settlement names the business, its owners Haifeng Xiao and Yanling Wang, and the property owner Billy Wayne Fondren as defendants. All have agreed to stop operating, associating, advertising, promoting, owning or having a financial or managerial interest in a massage establishment in the County.
According to the news release, under the terms of the settlement:
- The defendants are permanently barred from operating, owning, managing, advertising, or financially supporting any massage business in El Paso County.
- Billy Wayne Fondren will not operate, associate, advertise, promote, own, or have a financial or managerial interest in a massage establishment in El Paso County.
- Yanling Wang will permanently close Oriental Massage Spa and will not be able to operate or manage any massage establishment in El Paso County.
- Haifeng Xiao will permanently close Oriental Massage Spa and cannot operate or manage a massage establishment in El Paso County, and will notify the County Attorney’s office if she gains employment at a spa.
- The use of the name “Oriental Massage Spa” or any close variation is prohibited. Billy Wayne Fondren may not employ or rent property located at 6301 Airport Road, El Paso, Texas 79925, to massage therapists or a massage establishment, nor operate or rent the property to a massage business.
Additionally, as part of the agreement:
- Haifeng Xiao and Yanling Wang will pay $15,000 in fines and fees, plus $207 in court costs.
- Billy Wayne Fondren will pay $5,000 in fines and fees, plus $207 in court costs.
- Attorney and investigator fees were waived.
- Defendants made no admissions as to wrongdoing as part of the settlement.
“This case demonstrates how we can use civil remedies, like nuisance abatement lawsuits, to shut down operations that contribute to larger issues and improve the quality of life for the citizens of El Paso County,” El Paso County Attorney Christina Sanchez said, praising the outcome.
The Attorney’s Office said the case was a joint effort involving the Texas Department of Public Safety Criminal Investigations Division Human Trafficking Unit, the El Paso Police Department Vice Unit, and the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation.
Residents are encouraged to report public nuisances that harm their neighborhoods. Complaints can be submitted by emailing NATreporting@epcountytx.gov, calling (915) 273-3238, or visiting here.
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