Huron County woman among 8 indicted in case linked to Ohio massage parlors
WARREN -- A Huron County resident is among eight people indicted in a human trafficking case linked to two Warren massage parlors, authorities said.
The Ohio Attorney General's Office said that Miock Dong Schaffer, aka “Cookie,” 56, of Norwalk faces:
-- 1 count of engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity (F1)
-- 9 counts of money laundering (F3)
-- 1 count of promoting prostitution (F4)
The indictment of Schaffer and the others was announced May 1.
The indictment alleges the group operated Tiger Spa and Sunny Spa on West Market Street, in Warren, as fronts for sex trafficking and money laundering, the state said.
"The crime ring allegedly trapped Korean women at the establishments for three months at a time, forcing them to live on the premises 24/7 and perform sex acts for money," the AG's office said.
The charges -- all felonies -- stem from an ongoing investigation by the Mahoning Valley Human Trafficking Task Force, formed under the Ohio Organized Crime Investigations Commission, part of Yost’s office.
The investigation culminated in indictment for crimes spanning more than five years, the attorney general's office said. Many of the indictment’s 83 counts name multiple defendants.
Tiger Spa has since closed.
Yost’s Special Prosecutions Section is prosecuting the case in Trumbull County Common Pleas Court.
All defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
