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Though no mention of anyone "suffering" a release.
Four women have been arrested in a crackdown on massage parlors in Pembroke Pines after an undercover officer stripped down for sexual massages.
The cop described in arrest reports how he visited massage parlors and complied when workers asked him to remove his clothing for massages. He also wrote about how workers solicited him for sex while making abrupt advances, including touching his private parts. He refused their offers each time.
After his investigation, police arrested four women from the massage parlors Tuesday on charges of soliciting prostitution and practicing massage therapy without a license.
A Pembroke Pines police spokesman defended the officers actions, saying the investigator in these cases did just as any patron would, when going to get a legitimate full body deep tissue massage.
"Whether or not the investigator opts to remain in their underwear or not [just as any patron], depends on the circumstances of their investigation at that point in time, said Capt. Al Xiques.
Although the officer wrote in one report that his masseuse ultimately left me exposed, Xiques said his body was never fully exposed voluntarily since the woman was the one to remove the towel.
But defense lawyers whove defended people arrested in such cases say the officers nude participation likely crossed the line.
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Herbert Cohen, a Fort Lauderdale attorney, views such cases as entrapment. Cohen, a prosecutor in Broward in 1979, said there were cases back then when cops got naked for prostitution stings and several judges dismissed the cases. Judges would question whether cops identified themselves, asking things like: Where did you hide your badge?
There is a limit to how far law enforcement can go to find a crime, Cohen said.
They are not supposed to go participate.
Law enforcement has been restricted from going that extra distance. He asked, How do you arrest someone if you help them complete the crime and you participate in it?
Eric Schwartzreich is also a Fort Lauderdale defense lawyer not involved in the Pembroke Pines case. He is representing a man arrested in an unrelated massage parlor sting in Martin County. He doubts the cops nudity was appropriate.
How far can law enforcement go to catch a crime? I dont think its a good idea for law enforcement to deploy techniques like that, he said. You have a danger: Youre creating a fake victim. They become part and parcel of that case of nefarious activity.
Browards police agencies have used nude stings before, saying if they didnt get naked and appear to be regular customers, the women wouldnt have anything to do with them.
Part of the stings in Hallandale Beach in past years have tried to delve into human trafficking, where women, many from China, were feared to be sex slaves. In 2013, cops in Hallandale stripped their clothes and their guns to engage in skin-to-skin contact to make arrests.
Other agencies have tried alternative ways: Last year multiple law enforcement agencies planted video cameras inside massage parlors to make arrests. It was part of a wider-ranging investigation that snared dozens of men from Jupiter north to Martin County and west toward Orlando.
Among the men arrested: Robert Kraft, owner of New England Patriots, who is charged with two misdemeanor counts of soliciting prostitution. Police said the part-time Palm Beach resident was caught on a secret camera paying for sex acts on separate days. But court observers saw that case unravel, saying that prostitution sting was doomed from the beginning because of a string of law enforcement missteps.
Officers in Boca Raton used secret cameras for similar massage-parlor crackdowns at least twice in 2007 and 2014, charging dozens of men and madams, records show.
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In the latest case involving the undercover Pembroke Pines officer, police reports identified the women facing charges as Hongyan Li, Jianxia Xin, Rongling Huang and Weixia Shi, all of whom were arrested Tuesday.
In this months Pembroke Pines cases, the undercover officer wrote in Lis arrest report that he entered the Charm Spa Massage on Jan. 28 and spent $50 in agency money on a 30-minute massage.
He wrote that Li patted his rear end while they walked to the room, and once inside, patted his groin area. He left another $58 on the bedside table as a tip.
During the massage he said she solicited him for sex, and he declined. Once his clothes were on after the massage, which including grabbing his genitals, he asked her to repeat how much it would cost to have sex with her. His recording device was turned on.
I hinted that I would consider it and ultimately exited the business, he wrote.
The same officer went to 5 Roses Spa in November and paid Xin $40 for a 30-minute massage, leaving $40 on the table for a tip. He left after she grabbed his private parts and solicited him for sex. He went back in January.
In the third case, the officer visited the Charm Spa Massage in December and got a massage from Huang, and he asked her to tease him. In the fourth case, the officer visited Shi at the Body Salon, where he said he was solicited for sex.
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The arrested women were all bonded out before they would need to make their first court appearances, and they have not yet been assigned defense attorneys.
The case has not yet been assigned to the public defenders office, but Gordon Weekes, the executive chief public defender, said he was surprised cops didnt deep-dive into the human trafficking potential.
I dont understand why law enforcement would not delve deeper into that aspect of this activity to determine if they are victims as opposed to perpetrators engaged in unlawful conduct, he said.
Xiques said this was not part of a larger investigation.
We received a tip from a concerned citizen, who overheard it from others, he said. "They expressed concern for their children within the neighborhood, as well as the clientele that prostitution may attract. Our priority is to ensure that our community is safe, and that no criminal activity is taking place within any business within our city.
When we receive tips of this nature every once in a while, we take immediate action investigating.