413047-Underground-Commercial-Sex-Economy

say you got five people at the top, and these five people at the top have say 5,000 massage
parlors and this persons got five hits. It’s not like that at all. (Denver Law Enforcement
Official)
Investigators described how massage parlors make a great deal of money and know how to hide money
well. According to law enforcement, during every raid, massage parlors typically have between $3,000 to
$5,000 worth of cash on-site. The rest of the money is often found hidden in safety deposit boxes and
other locations (e.g., a gym locker). One of the big massage parlor investigations conducted by Denver
officials recovered approximately $1.5 million in cash assets. As a sign of the amount of money generated,
it is also common for individuals arrested through massage parlor stings to retain private lawyers.
Figure 4.5 Erotic Massage Parlors in the Denver Metro
Dozens of Latino brothels have been dismantled throughout Denver. Brothels advertise services through
basic business cards with a phone number and fake name, which is passed out to Latino men. Relative to
massage parlors, the brothels are highly mobile, sometimes changing locations every day.
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