Police raid 8 massage parlors across Roanoke County
Officers stand outside the Sunny Spa Massage on Brambleton Avenue while search warrants are executed.
Teams of police officers raided eight businesses Monday morning as part of an ongoing investigation into what were called “illicit massage parlors” operating across Roanoke County.
Search warrants were executed at establishments on Brambleton Avenue, Williamson Road, Peters Creek Road and Electric Road.
Citizen complaints sparked the investigation, according to the Roanoke County Police Department.
Working with county officers were a variety of local and federal agencies that included the FBI, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, and Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
An undisclosed number of people had been arrested and were being processed into jail Monday afternoon, according to Roanoke County spokeswoman Amy Whittaker. Those charged included both staff members and patrons, Whittaker said.
Identities of those arrested, and the nature of their charges, were not immediately released.
Victims — which included workers at the parlors — were located, removed from the premises and offered resources, police said.
Although details of the Roanoke County businesses were not known, an investigation by the Lee Enterprises Public Service Journalism Team found that many of the women who work at massage parlors across the country are foreign nationals whose lives are controlled by their employers.
County police identified the following businesses that were raided: Amazing Body Works in the 3200 block of Brambleton, Angel Massage in the 3100 block of Brambleton, Best Spa in the 6400 block of Williamson, YJN in the 2100 block of Electric, Red Apple Asian Massage in the 8200 block of Williamson, Relaxing Choice Spa in the 5300 block of Peters Creek, Summer Body Work in the 7300 block of Williamson, and Sunny Spa Massage in the 3600 block of Brambleton.
At Sunny Spa, a sign on the front door said it was open seven days a week, from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Also on the door were decals indicating that the spa had received a business license from Roanoke County.
Police said they are working with the county Commissioner of the Revenue Office to review the status of the business licenses.
After the police raids had been completed by early afternoon, no one answered knocks on the doors of the three massage parlors on Brambleton, and calls to the businesses were not returned.
Employees at four businesses next to the seemingly deserted parlors all declined to comment.
Also working with Roanoke County police were the county commonwealth’s attorney’s office, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Virginia, the Botetourt County Sheriff’s Office and the Roanoke Police Department.
In Botetourt County, officers with a search warrant showed up to a home on Island Green Road in the Daleville community and seized items that were not identified by authorities.
The investigation is ongoing, Roanoke County police said.
Organized investigations of massage parlors in recent years have been rare in the Roanoke and New River valleys.
In 2021, Christiansburg police conducted a three-month investigation initiated by complaints of illicit sexual behavior at three businesses in the town. On multiple visits, undercover officers paid for massages and then made arrests after being offered sexual services in exchange for an additional fee, police said at the time.
Five female workers were charged. They all received suspended jail sentences and were ordered to pay fines and perform community service.
Laurence Hammack (540) 981-3239
