WAFF.com: North Alabama News, Radar, Weather, Sports and Jobs-Alleged sex spa shut down by sheriff
Member Center:
By Jeanie Powell - bio | email
Posted by Dana Franks - email
ATHENS, AL (WAFF) - The Limestone County Sheriff's Office kicked down the front door of Pleaser's Spa just before 6 p.m. Tuesday, and only WAFF 48 News' cameras were rolling when three employees were taken into custody.
Pleaser's was once a spa in Madison County owned by Chida Thomas. WAFF 48 News last spoke with Thomas last February, when her business was facing allegations that clients were paying for sex and other acts.
Now, Thomas owns Pleasers off Highway 72 in Limestone County and is facing the same dilemma.
Sheriff Mike Blakely told WAFF 48 News Tuesday, "We had some complaints on it."
Blakely paid a visit to Pleasers a couple weeks ago and told Thomas she needed a massage therapy license. He warned her he'd shut her down in Limestone County if she was doing anything illegal.
"Of course, they informed us they didn't do massages," Blakely said. "They just do full body rubs."
But Blakely said he feels there's no difference.
"These people were going just a little bit further than just the body rubs," he told WAFF 48 News.
The investigation continued and on Tuesday, Blakely said the girls agreed to perform sexual acts on an undercover officer for a certain amount of cash.
Two girls, Crystal Crews and Tiffany Hill, both working at Pleasers, were arrested and Thomas was located and soon arrested.
WAFF 48 News got exclusive video of the three as they were escorted out of the business and taken off to jail.
When asked if the three were doing anything illegal, Crews and Hill said no; Thomas told WAFF 48 News, "You don't see any handcuffs?"
They weren't cuffed, but they were taken off to jail and on Tuesday night all three were charged with promoting prostitution.
Just a few minutes later, up the road on U.S. Highway 72 at Eastern and Western Spa, Janet Lee was arrested for promoting prostitution in a separate investigation.
©2009 WAFF. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Comments Terms of Use: We welcome your participation in our community. Please keep your comments civil and on point. Notify us of any inappropriate comments by clicking the “Mark as Offensive” link. You must be at least 13 years of age to post comments. By submitting a comment, you agree to these
Terms of Service
You must be logged in to leave a comment. Login or register See all comments |
C'mon, play. You know you want to. The boss will never know.
