MENTOR-ON-THE-LAKE – State, county and local law enforcement officers conducted a raid Thursday, Nov. 13, on a Mentor-on-the-Lake massage parlor suspected of trafficking victims into illegal sex work.
Business and financial records, along with thousands of dollars in cash, were confiscated by officers from the Northeast Ohio Human Trafficking Task Force, Lake County Sheriff’s Office and Mentor-on-the-Lake Police Department during an investigation into The Dragon Spa, 5975 Andrews Road, according to a joint statement from Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost and Lake County Sheriff Frank Leonbruno.
A nearby residence linked to the business was also searched, according to Chief Deputy Robert Izzo of the Lake County Sheriff’s Office.
He said the operation aimed to hold accountable those who abuse survivors or drive human trafficking by agreeing to pay for sex. Possible victims of human trafficking were identified and were offered services to help free them from these criminal entities.
By having greater participation in such task forces, it will help the sheriff’s office more quickly identify criminal activity in Lake County and work to ensure it’s a safe place to live, raise a family and do business, according to Izzo.
“If even one victim of human trafficking can be identified and helped, the operation is a success and worth the effort,” he said. “We will continue to work to identify those taking advantage of these victims.”
The raid is among several conducted in recent months by the task force and local law enforcement, according to a press release from Yost’s office.
In August, four spas in Lorain and Cuyahoga counties were searched, and, as part of OOCIC’s statewide anti-human trafficking sting in September, Operation Next Door, the task force raided three spas in the greater Cleveland area.
“No licensed, reputable massage business offers sexual services in exchange for money,” Yost said. “Illicit massage parlors are a blight on our communities and will continue to be targets for our human trafficking task forces.”
The investigation remains ongoing. Anyone with information about the business is asked to call the task force tip line at 216-443-6085.
