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| Newbury Park Calif., Star Spa involved in prostitution bust |
Thousand Oaks, Calif., November 13, 2024-- A coordinated operation was executed by detectives from the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office, in collaboration with the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Search warrants were served at multiple locations, including Swan Spa, Star Spa, Victoria Spa, Four Seasons Spa, as well as a personal residence. As a result, Amanda (Ruifen) Xia, 44, of Yorba Linda was arrested and booked into the Ventura County Sheriff’s Pre-Trial Detention Facility with bail of $100,000. The charges include pimping, pandering, and money laundering.
This all began in the early months of 2024, detectives from the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office Special Crimes Unit initiated an investigation into Swan Spa, located in Thousand Oaks. Suspecting it to be operating as a commercial sex establishment disguised as a legitimate skin treatment spa. Throughout the investigation, detectives uncovered evidence of ongoing commercial sex activity at this location and determined that the owner, Amanda Xia, was financially benefiting from the illegal activities of her employees, who were providing commercial sex services to customers.
Further investigation revealed that Xia was the owner and operator of three additional establishments engaged in similar illicit activities. These businesses, including Swan Spa, were identified as brothels facilitating commercial sex services. Detectives were able to positively identify multiple male individuals suspected of purchasing commercial sex at each of the four locations under investigation.
The Ventura County Sheriff’s Office would like to thank members of the public for their on-going support and due diligence in providing information to assist our agency in solving crimes. We are better at what we do because of our community partnerships.
The Law
Penal Code Section 186.10(A)
(a) Any person who conducts or attempts to conduct a transaction or more than one transaction within a seven-day period involving a monetary instrument or instruments of a total value exceeding five thousand dollars ($5,000), or a total value exceeding twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000) within a 30-day period, through one or more financial institutions (1) with the specific intent to promote, manage, establish, carry on, or facilitate the promotion, management, establishment, or carrying on of any criminal activity, or (2) knowing that the monetary instrument represents the proceeds of, or is derived directly or indirectly from the proceeds of, criminal activity, is guilty of the crime of money laundering. The aggregation periods do not create an obligation for financial institutions to record, report, create, or implement tracking systems or otherwise monitor transactions involving monetary instruments in any time period. In consideration of the constitutional right to counsel afforded by the Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution and Section 15 of Article I of the California Constitution, when a case involves an attorney who accepts a fee for representing a client in a criminal investigation or proceeding, the prosecution shall additionally be required to prove that the monetary instrument was accepted by the attorney with the intent to disguise or aid in disguising the source of the funds or the nature of the criminal activity.
A violation of this section shall be punished by imprisonment in a county jail for not more than one year or pursuant to subdivision (h) of Section 1170, by a fine of not more than two hundred fifty thousand dollars ($250,000) or twice the value of the property transacted, whichever is greater, or by both that imprisonment and fine. However, for a second or subsequent conviction for a violation of this section, the maximum fine that may be imposed is five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000) or five times the value of the property transacted, whichever is greater.
Penal Code Section 266h(a)
(a) Except as provided in subdivision (b), any person who, knowing another person is a prostitute, lives or derives support or maintenance in whole or in part from the earnings or proceeds of the person’s prostitution, or from money loaned or advanced to or charged against that person by any keeper or manager or inmate of a house or other place where prostitution is practiced or allowed, or who solicits or receives compensation for soliciting for the person, is guilty of pimping, a felony, and shall be punishable by imprisonment in the state prison for three, four, or six years.
Penal Code Section 266i(a)(1)
(a) Except as provided in subdivision (b), any person who does any of the following is guilty of pandering, a felony, and shall be punishable by imprisonment in the state prison for three, four, or six years:
(1) Procures another person for the purpose of prostitution.
Resources for Trafficking Victims
Human Trafficking Hotline
Victim Services
https://www.cdcr.ca.gov/victim-services/contact-ovsrs/California State Victim Services
Resources In General
Businesses
Swan Spa - 100 N Rancho Rd #110, Thousand Oaks, CA 91362
Star Spa - 497 N Ventu Park Rd, Newbury Park, CA 91320
Victoria Spa - 23331 El Toro Rd, Ste 104, Lake Forest, CA 92630
Four Seasons Spa - 20702 Lake Forest Dr A5, Lake Forest, CA 92630
Agencies Involved
Ventura County Sheriff Special Crimes/Intelligence Unit
Ventura County District Attorney’s Office
Ventura County Sheriff Narcotics Bureau
Thousand Oaks Direct Enforcement Unit
Thousand Oaks Special Enforcement Unit
Thousand Oaks Patrol Services
Camarillo Investigations Bureau
Camarillo Special Enforcement Unit
Camarillo Direct Enforcement Unit
Federal Bureau of Investigation
Thousand Oaks City Code Enforcement
Interface Children and Family Services
Ventura County Human Trafficking Task Force
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