MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Md. — A woman is facing charges of sex trafficking after police say she was operating an illegal spa in Montgomery County, Maryland.
According to a release from the Montgomery County Department of Police (MCPD), 63-year-old Yang Jiang is accused of running an unlicensed spa.
Detectives began investigating the spa on Physicians Lane in Rockville after finding ads with "scantily clad Asian women in lingerie on a website known to solicit prostitution."
Investigators say they watched male clients entering and leaving the illegal spa. On Dec. 28, detectives served a search warrant for the business.
According to police, a sex trafficking victim said Jiang had hired her to give massage services and then said she could make extra money by providing "sexual services" to the clients.
Jiang was arrested on charges of prostitution on Jan. 4. Nearly a month later, she was also charged with two counts of sex trafficking.
Police say Jiang's arrest is the third incident in recent months involving an illicit spa and human trafficking in Montgomery County.
"This underscores the real and rising threat posed by human trafficking in the region,” said Chief Marcus Jones. “Victims of human trafficking are not always forced into trafficking by brute, physical means. Victims are often coerced into being trafficked over a period of time through deliberate, psychological tactics used by their traffickers, so the signs of trafficking may not always be obvious,” Jones continued. “There are several ways that victims of trafficking can obtain help and can contact either the police department directly or the Montgomery County Crisis Center.”
Anyone with information is asked to contact the Montgomery County Department of Police Vice and Intelligence Unit at 240-773-5958 or contact Crime Solvers of Montgomery County toll-free at 1-866-411-TIPS (8477).
If you know someone who is a victim of sex trafficking, contact the Montgomery County Crisis Center. The center provides free crisis services 24 hours a day/ 365 days a year. Services are provided by telephone (240-777-4000) or in person at 1301 Piccard Drive in Rockville (no appointment needed) or call 911.
In a press release, the FBI announced agents found 84 child victims during the two week nationwide crackdown this month.