Ashland police and investigators from five other agencies descended on 99 China Massage at 290 N. Main St. on Friday, executing a search warrant that capped an investigation stretching back to August. Two female employees of the business were arrested and lodged in jail on charges tied to operating a massage parlor without the required licenses, while authorities said the human trafficking concerns that first triggered the probe remain unconfirmed.
The investigation began in August after Ashland police received complaints about possible illicit activity at the business, including concerns about potential human trafficking, according to The Ashland Chronicle. That tip set off a monthslong effort that culminated Friday with search warrants at both the massage parlor and a residence immediately next door at 254 N. Main St.
Friday's operation was not an Ashland-only affair. Personnel on site included members of the Oregon Department of Justice, Oregon State Police, the Jackson County Sheriff's Office and the Grants Pass Police Department, along with the Oregon Board of Massage, as reported by Ashland.news. Ashland Police Chief Tighe O'Meara said at least a couple of arrests were being made in connection with illegally providing massage services, and he confirmed that no buyers were arrested during the raid.
Charges Filed, Identities Withheld
The two arrested women were booked on charges related to operating the massage business without required licenses, but police said their identities had not been established at the time of the department's announcement. Authorities have not announced any additional charges or confirmed whether the investigation substantiated the initial human trafficking concerns, the Chronicle's report noted. Police said the case remains open and that additional information may be released as it progresses.
Under Ashland's municipal code, conducting business activity in the city without a valid license or an applicable exemption is unlawful, according to the Ashland Municipal Code. That licensing requirement is the legal hook behind Friday's arrests, even as the broader trafficking question stays unresolved.
Part of a Wider Southern Oregon Pattern
99 China Massage had already drawn scrutiny before Thursday's raid. Anti-trafficking organizations had identified the Ashland business, along with Zijin Foot Massage Spa in Talent, as allegedly illicit massage operations and reported them to state authorities, per the Rogue Valley Times. The outlet also reported that monitoring groups had identified more than a dozen suspected illicit massage businesses in Jackson County and another eight to 10 in neighboring Josephine County.
Statewide estimates of the problem vary depending on the source. The Rogue Valley Times reported the Oregon Board of Massage Therapists' count rising from about five dozen such businesses in 2019 to an estimated 340 by the end of 2025, while KPTV reported the board's executive director placing the 2025 figure closer to 301, up from about 63 in 2019. Either way, the trend line points the same direction: a growing number of unlicensed operations across the state.
Southern Oregon has seen its own enforcement push this year. Five illicit massage shops in the region closed over the summer following investigations and citations from the Oregon Board of Massage Therapists, according to Your Oregon News. Oregon officials investigated and issued penalties in 122 cases over the past year, the outlet reported, even as local anti-trafficking advocates estimate at least 33 illicit massage businesses are still operating in the region.
A Familiar Pattern Across the Border
Nearby Grants Pass offers a preview of how these cases can unfold. Late-2025 license checks there resulted in citations for at least four illicit massage businesses, including one called 99 Asian Massage, the same outlet reported. State officials verified that business as unlicensed and found violations including offering sexual services, and a June 2025 Oregon Board of Massage Therapists final order separately described an undercover state investigator's findings that an unlicensed practitioner used inadequate draping and offered sexual services, according to Ashland.news.
For now, the Ashland case remains open. Police have not said whether the trafficking concerns that launched the August investigation were ever confirmed, and no further charges have been announced beyond the licensing violations tied to Friday's arrests. Investigators say more details could surface as the inquiry moves forward.
