A 38-year-old woman who owned two Lancaster County massage spas was arrested Thursday on felony charges accusing her of running the businesses as commercial-sex operations for years, according to state prosecutors. Lijin Chen is charged with running a corrupt organization, promoting prostitution and dealing in proceeds of unlawful activities tied to Calm Spa in Manheim and Cozy Spa in Mount Joy, businesses she has owned since 2023.
Chen was arrested Oct. 22 on the felony counts, according to WGAL, which first reported the charges stemming from an investigation by the Pennsylvania Attorney General's Human Trafficking Section and the Pennsylvania State Police. As LancasterOnline reports, authorities began looking into the two spas after hearing about them from customers of an unrelated massage parlor in Elizabethtown more than two years before LancasterOnline's October 23, 2026, article, and Chen resides in Flushing, New York.
Investigators allege Chen advertised the spas online for commercial sex and personally transported women to both locations, using her own vehicle as well as ride-share services. LancasterOnline reported that investigators also obtained bank records and ride-share details as part of the probe. WGAL reported that surveillance detectives conducted confirmed that commercial sex acts occurred at both spas.
Patrons Described Paying Tips for Sex Acts
People interviewed while leaving the spas told investigators they received sex acts in exchange for tips ranging from $100 to $200, per the same account. Separately, Local 21 News reports that investigators interviewed 10 patrons who said they had gone to the spas and were offered sexual services.
Accounts of Chen's bail and custody status have not lined up across coverage. WGAL and ABC27 both reported that Chen's bail was set at $100,000, with ABC27 adding that she was being held in Lancaster County Prison. Local 21 News, however, reported that Chen was out on bail according to her docket. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Oct. 29.
Part of a Broader Pattern in Pennsylvania
The case echoes other recent Pennsylvania investigations into massage businesses accused of fronting for prostitution. In Lebanon County, the district attorney's office filed nine felony charges in September against Na Wei, 41, over her alleged role running New Venus Spa, according to the Institute to Address Commercial Sexual Exploitation. Local 21 News separately reported that a search of New Venus Spa turned up 396 condoms, more than $17,000 in cash, a lease and checks written to Wei's bank account.
In Erie County, a federal indictment in January accused four Chinese nationals of running Point Spa in Erie and Sunny Spa in Harborcreek as houses of prostitution in what prosecutors called a family operation, according to GoErie. The U.S. Attorney's Office in that case alleged that the word “spa” was a misnomer for both businesses. GoErie also reported that two New York women faced prostitution charges in June after state police searched a Millcreek Township massage parlor.
What Pennsylvania Law Says About Prostitution
Under Pennsylvania law, an adult is guilty of prostitution if they engage in sexual activity as a business or loiter in or within view of a public place to be hired for sexual activity, according to the Pennsylvania General Assembly. The statute defines sexual activity to include sexual intercourse, deviate sexual intercourse and certain touching of sexual or other intimate parts intended to gratify sexual desire, and an offense under that subsection is classified as a third-degree misdemeanor. Chen's felony charges, including corrupt organizations and dealing in proceeds of unlawful activities, carry far greater weight than the underlying misdemeanor prostitution statute.
The investigation into Calm Spa and Cozy Spa remains ongoing, according to WGAL's report. No additional arrests or charges beyond Chen have been disclosed, and her preliminary hearing next week is expected to be the next public step in the case.
