It’s everywhere. It’s extremely profitable. And it’s exploiting women with vulnerabilities. As of 2023, there are over 13,000 illicit massage businesses (IMBs) in all 50 states. Whether in big cities or small towns, this criminal industry is thriving in plain sight.
“Why don’t the women just leave?” When answering this question, it is critical to understand the nuances of force, fraud, and coercion that traffickers use to exploit workers in the illicit massage industry.
Tax evasion. Money laundering. Racketeering. Labor law violations. If we want to defeat traffickers, then we need to charge outside the (human trafficking) box.
