BETTENDORF, Iowa (KWQC) – A 58-year-old woman, identified as Heling Di, was arrested Thursday in connection with a human trafficking investigation involving multiple massage parlors in Bettendorf.
Di, the owner of Ming Spa on Middle Road, faces charges of pimping and multiple other felonies, following police raids at both her business and another massage parlor, Elite Massage on Spruce Hills Drive.
Authorities say employees were engaging in sex acts for money, though no workers were arrested. Instead, police stated the employees are being treated as victims of human trafficking and have been connected with local advocacy organizations to support recovery and relocation efforts.
The businesses, which had signs advertising relaxing massages and reflexology services, reportedly concealed illicit activity behind tinted windows, a pattern seen increasingly in quiet Midwestern towns like those in the Quad Cities.
According to data from the National Human Trafficking Hotline, Iowa saw 166 tips related to trafficking last year, with Illinois reporting 792. Experts, including those from the Polaris Project, warn that these numbers likely represent only a small portion of actual cases.
Common traits of victims in such massage parlor trafficking operations, per Polaris, include:
Recent immigration from China or South Korea
Large, unpayable debts
Limited English language skills
Low levels of formal education
Many are mothers in their 30s to 50s
Investigators are focusing on dismantling trafficking operations by targeting ring leaders and business owners like Di, rather than prosecuting the women involved in the illicit services.
The investigation is ongoing.
