Dearborn spa shut down for alleged prostitution

DEARBORN, Mich. (WJBK) - A Dearborn spa has been shut down and the owner is behind bars after the establishment was allegedly being used for prostitution.

"It's going to be shut down for as long as we can legally shut it down," said Dearborn Police Chief Ronald Haddad.

Haddad says the Silver Spa on Michigan Avenue was offering more than just massages. The woman running the business, Eunkyung Kim, is now charged with operating a house of prostitution and accepting earnings from a prostitute. Both are felonies. 

The chief says complaints about the spa have been coming in for years.

On Aug. 29, Dearborn police say they responded to the Silver Spa and conducted a search warrant. An investigation revealed prostitution was happening at the business and the evidence led to Kim's arrest. It also led to the city shutting down the entire building, leaving neighboring businesses, like the Shawarma Bash, unable to operate for nearly two weeks.

Hass Soudah of  Shawarma Bash says he had no idea anything illegal was happening at the spa. He and his customers at the restaurant just want to be able to re-open, but the city says plumbing and electrical work had been done in the spa without a permit so there's no certificate of occupancy for the building. And until they can contact the owner and arrange for an inspection, nobody can get inside.

In the meantime, the owner of Silver Spa already went before a judge, who set her bond at $200,000 cash.

"This investigation is also ongoing. It's highly complex but we know that we have at least one charge pending and she'll be in court on the 21," Haddad said. 

The chief says they're going to keep this business closed as long as they can. The owner is due back in court at the end of the month, but it's unclear just when the other businesses here may be able to re-open.