Chiang Mai Massage Parlour Owner Apprehended for Underage Prostitution

[webfact]

 

A police raid was carried out on April 23, 2024, at a massage parlour in Mueang Chiang Mai following allegations of forced underage sex work.

 

The proprietor, 21-year-old Natthanaree Puangmala, was arrested on charges of clandestinely operating a prostitution ring involving minors under 18 years old. Puangmala reportedly charged customers an extra 3,000 baht for illicit services.

 

During the investigation, police discovered a financial ledger indicating regular monthly bribes of 20,000 baht to government officials. Six underage victims were rescued and taken in for interviews under the guidance of Thai multidisciplinary agencies, who are also providing necessary support to the victims.

 

Puangmala was taken into custody, with computer devices and CCTV footage seized as potential evidence. The charges levelled against her include illicit prostitution and running a healthcare establishment without proper authorization.

 

Prior to the arrest, the massage parlour had been under surveillance due to frequent change of locations, presumably to evade detection. Leads from the ongoing investigation led to this successful raid and rescue operation.

 

The probe is also set to scrutinize the government officials implicated in the bribery.

 

-- ASEAN NOW 2024-04-25

 

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[Skipalongcassidy]

Here come the "those girls knew what they were doing... not really abuse" crowd.

[ezzra]

I'm trying to think how can one force a bunch of girls to prostitute themselves all the time,

one or two maybe but a whole bunch?...

[HappyExpat57]

2 hours ago, webfact said:

regular monthly bribes of 20,000 baht to government officials.

Will they be charged as well?

[Ralf001]

45 minutes ago, ezzra said:

I'm trying to think how can one force a bunch of girls to prostitute themselves all the time,

one or two maybe but a whole bunch?...

 

Been coping a length from uncles and brothers since their very early teens, might as well step it up and get paid for it !

[ezzra]

Been in Thailand long enough and seen plenty of places full of working girls to know that 99.9% are willingly

engaging in this profession, which makes the force prostitution claim hard to accept...

[ChrisY1]

The Thb 20K/month to officials would no doubt be right on...this would be a usual fee...but were officials names registered? If so, I would imagine the ledger will disappear. 

How many massage parlors in Chiang Mai.....? Almost on every corner and often next door to each other.....but they're not hookers working in them...they're all Wat Po specialists:))

Edited April 25 by ChrisY1

[hotchilli]

3 hours ago, webfact said:

During the investigation, police discovered a financial ledger indicating regular monthly bribes of 20,000 baht to government officials

I do hope they will also be arrested

[thesetat]

3 hours ago, Skipalongcassidy said:

Here come the "those girls knew what they were doing... not really abuse" crowd.

I would think that there would be a way they had to show they were forced into providing this type of service as well as being kept prisoner and unable to leave before a claim could be made they were abused in any way. You seem to think nothing is needed for this.

But let's say for example you go to happy ending massage place and the woman gives you the happy ending. I seriously doubt you are asking her age or if she can go out with you. Just as sure that when you went into the business those same massage girls were not in handcuffs or behind locked doors unable to leave. 

Clearly the owner made the choice to allow these young women to work there and profit from their services to the customers and even pay the police bribes to allow it all to happen. However I do not see innocence with the young women. I do not see them forced except as being told if they wanted to work there then providing sex services is a condition of employment. Apparently the police also did not see them as forced and kept there without their wanting to be there or there would be kidnapping and many other charges laid out against the shop owner. 

Yes, it is illegal. Yes, it is immoral. But to say it is abuse would be incorrect without any kind of proof. also if you look at the charges made.. They say nothing about kidnapping or confinement of the young girls. So they clearly wanted to do this type of work and collect a large amount of money for themselves and their families. So how is this abuse? 

Any customers who knowingly engaged in paying for their sex was wrong as well and should be prosecuted as well. But what about those customers who did not know or ask for sex specifically with a underage girl? Asking for proof of age when getting a massage when it is customary in these types of massage business for the woman to make  them excited and then offer sex services without telling the man their age so it should not make him guilty as well. Usually a 15, 16, 17 or 18 year old Thai girl looks older when wearing street clothes. Even I myself have was surprised at the similarities to them compared to their wearing school clothes. Catch them on the street in a mall or something and they could easily pass for 24 or 25. They dress the part and act it as well. 

 

[tandor]

1 hour ago, HappyExpat57 said:

Will they be charged as well?

i hope they declare this additional 'assessable income'.

[newbee2022]

4 hours ago, webfact said:

Six underage victims were rescued

They were not forced to serve.

They probably liked the money.

However, any career starts at some point.

If they would have the chance of education (parents, school, appropriate learning on a job, apprenticeship aso) it might not have happened.😶

[saintdomingo]

What is the minimum legal age for any kind of full time employment.?

[PETERTHEEATER]

10 hours ago, webfact said:

The probe is also set to scrutinize the government officials implicated in the bribery

On your marks......get set......NO!

[Neeranam]

9 hours ago, saintdomingo said:

What is the minimum legal age for any kind of full time employment.?

15 for some professions, 18 for others

[Neeranam]

15 hours ago, ezzra said:

Been in Thailand long enough and seen plenty of places full of working girls to know that 99.9% are willingly

engaging in this profession, which makes the force prostitution claim hard to accept...

I suspect you have only been mongering in the places for foreigners. 

[Skipalongcassidy]

23 hours ago, thesetat said:

I would think that there would be a way they had to show they were forced into providing this type of service as well as being kept prisoner and unable to leave before a claim could be made they were abused in any way. You seem to think nothing is needed for this.

But let's say for example you go to happy ending massage place and the woman gives you the happy ending. I seriously doubt you are asking her age or if she can go out with you. Just as sure that when you went into the business those same massage girls were not in handcuffs or behind locked doors unable to leave. 

Clearly the owner made the choice to allow these young women to work there and profit from their services to the customers and even pay the police bribes to allow it all to happen. However I do not see innocence with the young women. I do not see them forced except as being told if they wanted to work there then providing sex services is a condition of employment. Apparently the police also did not see them as forced and kept there without their wanting to be there or there would be kidnapping and many other charges laid out against the shop owner. 

Yes, it is illegal. Yes, it is immoral. But to say it is abuse would be incorrect without any kind of proof. also if you look at the charges made.. They say nothing about kidnapping or confinement of the young girls. So they clearly wanted to do this type of work and collect a large amount of money for themselves and their families. So how is this abuse? 

Any customers who knowingly engaged in paying for their sex was wrong as well and should be prosecuted as well. But what about those customers who did not know or ask for sex specifically with a underage girl? Asking for proof of age when getting a massage when it is customary in these types of massage business for the woman to make  them excited and then offer sex services without telling the man their age so it should not make him guilty as well. Usually a 15, 16, 17 or 18 year old Thai girl looks older when wearing street clothes. Even I myself have was surprised at the similarities to them compared to their wearing school clothes. Catch them on the street in a mall or something and they could easily pass for 24 or 25. They dress the part and act it as well. 

 

Yes you are the reason that this kind of human degrading and trafficking has become so prolific... keep up the good humanitarian work.

[prb]

You have to set up limits somewhere.

And for prostitution the limit is that using <18 yo is a criminal act, even if the minor is not forced to do it.

Edited April 26 by prb

[thesetat]

4 hours ago, Skipalongcassidy said:

Yes you are the reason that this kind of human degrading and trafficking has become so prolific... keep up the good humanitarian work.

clearly you do not understand english... go back to school ok

[Callmeishmael]

On 4/25/2024 at 3:28 AM, webfact said:

The proprietor, 21-year-old Natthanaree Puangmala,

The business owner was only 21??  She was probably recruiting the younger sisters of her school classmates!

[jingjai9]

I have been reading Thaivisa and ASNEAN.NOW for many years. I am surprised when I read stories such as this that female bosses are accused as often as male bosses. It just surprises me a bit that women are an important part of this criminal activity. 

When you go into an establishment that offers any kind of  service to the public, I would think that you would not have to check an employee's age. You would assume that if she is working in a public place located on any street she must be able to work there as it is not a secret location and the police or any official could walk in, no secrets as far as a customer is concerned. If the establishment offers money to the police to stay open or turn a blind eye, how can the customer be held responsible?

 

If you are offered a happy ending at a massage parlor and you accept, is that a crime in Thailand? If you are in a room with the massage person of legal age behind closed doors, the management does not know and they could be held harmless as the massage parlor is not offering the service. In such a scenario I would think the customer would be part of the transaction and culpable. 

 

I know in countries that have "John Laws" the customers are arrested along with prostitutes in a effort to discourage
illegal activities, but this is often done with street walkers who solicit independently outside of local establishments much the same as Freelancers in Thailand.

Does anyone on this forum know what the Thai laws say about activities within a massage parlor?

As far as the young people being forced into service, this would have to play out in the courts. I am not sure how many would agree with me but I am not sure how serious Thailand is about underage workers defined by western standards; I do not mean 12 - 14, but 15 and up. I have been told by older Thai people that having very young girls working in massage parlors was not that unusual years ago. Much of the change came about when America started threatening countries with sanctions if they allowed underage workers in any industry related to sexual activities. There were also UN organizations that campaigned heavily for cracking down on underage sex workers worldwide beginning in the 1980s. I think this brought about action by the Thai government to crack down. Thailand was not the only country exposed. 

I do not intend to condone any activities mentioned in this article, but only present questions about this issue of underage workers in the sex industry and its effects on business and government.

 

[Skipalongcassidy]

19 hours ago, thesetat said:

clearly you do not understand english... go back to school ok

I understand English perfectly well... maybe it's the way that you use it that's the problem.

[novacova]

On 4/24/2024 at 3:55 PM, ezzra said:

Been in Thailand long enough and seen plenty of places full of working girls to know that 99.9% are willingly

engaging in this profession, which makes the force prostitution claim hard to accept...

Delusional statement. The law is the law, simple as that.

[novacova]

On 4/25/2024 at 5:01 PM, prb said:

You have to set up limits somewhere.

And for prostitution the limit is that using <18 yo is a criminal act, even if the minor is not forced to do it.

Yes, but those words mean nothing to pedophiles creeptards that corrupt children. The law is there to protect the children so they can develop a meaningful life.