Qingqin Xie, a Chinese national living unlawfully in the United States, allegedly ran a prostitution business out of massage parlors in the Capital Region of New York, with the spa owner employing women to engage in sex acts with the customers.
Authorities detained the 39-year-old citizen of China on Thursday, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of New York. Xie had been arrested the previous day and charged with using interstate commerce facilities to run a prostitution business.
“As alleged, Xie, who does not have lawful status in the United States, ran a prostitution business out of massage parlors and failed to stop even after law enforcement searched one of those parlors last year,” Acting U.S. Attorney John A. Sarcone III said. “My Office will continue to work with our partners to ensure those who sexually exploit people for profit are held accountable.”
Xie allegedly paid to promote her business online, according to the complaint, which also noted the sexually explicit nature of several of the advertisements.
The charges against the spa owner could result in her serving five years in prison and paying a fine of at least $250,000, according to the attorney’s office.
The latest charge is not the first time that authorities have found evidence of commercial sex acts at a business operated by Xie. In October 2024, law enforcement conducted a search at Xie’s Moon Spa in East Greenbush, New York, where they seized evidence of commercial sex acts.
Despite law enforcement’s previous investigation into one of her spas, authorities suspect that Xie continued to operate similar businesses that employed women to engage in sex acts with customers.
Craig L. Tremaroli, the special agent in charge of the Albany Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Criminal Investigation, declared that Xie’s arrest should “send a message” that the FBI will collaborate with law enforcement partners to “shut down these disturbing illicit businesses and ensure those who operate them are brought to justice.”
New York State Police Superintendent Steven G. James said that Xie had “no regard for the impact [her] actions would have on the safety and well-being of others.”
“Intercepting illegal businesses will continue to be a top priority and integral part of protecting our communities from the associated harm they bring,” James said.
Earlier this year in Michigan, the Farmington Hills Police Department worked alongside the human trafficking task force and the prosecutor’s office to investigate a human trafficking enterprise involving illicit massage parlors.
In April, Paul Richard Katterman II was charged with allegedly helping his wife, Zixuan Wan, traffic four non-English-speaking women from China. The four women worked at three different locations in Farmington Hills, Westland and Commerce Township.
Katterman’s wife was charged by the Oakland County Prosecutor’s Office in March, but faced new charges in April, including money laundering, conducting a criminal enterprise and failure to file taxes.
Another massage parlor in San Diego shut down in 2024 after an investigation the previous year found evidence suggesting that prostitution took place there. According to the police, the noises coming from the massage parlor disturbed a neighboring youth Bible study that gathered at a nearby location.
During an investigation into the Ocean Spa Massage Parlor that spanned more than 125 hours, undercover police had four spa employees offer sex to them. Law enforcement also arrested four suspects and discovered almost 1,300 online sexual ads for the parlor spanning five years.
Samantha Kamman is a reporter for The Christian Post. She can be reached at: samantha.kamman@christianpost.com. Follow her on Twitter: @Samantha_Kamman
