Spa Manager Charged With Human Trafficking, Business Closed: Methuen Police

METHUEN, MA — A spa in Methuen was shut down by the city and the business's manager was charged with human trafficking after officials received complaints from residents, according to police.

"We will identify and apprehend traffickers, shut down every business in Methuen that profits from this evil, and hold landlords accountable if they harbor them — we will find you, and we are coming after you next,” Mayor D.J. Beauregard said in a news release.

Beauty Garden Spa on Wallace Street was shut down after police obtained a search warrant on Sept. 4 and found living quarters for two women in the basement of the commercially zoned building, according to police.

Suping Zhu, 38, of New York, was taken into custody Friday and is charged with human trafficking, deriving support from prostitution and being a keeper of a house of ill fame, according to police. He will be arraigned on Monday, police said.

"This operation marks the first blow in our aggressive campaign to eradicate human trafficking and sexual servitude in Methuen. The Methuen Police Department, standing united with Mayor Beauregard, is sending a clear and unmistakable warning to every nefarious proprietor running these vile operations: we are coming for you, and we will shut down your illegal enterprises with determined action," Chief Scott McNamara said in the news release.

"To the 'Johns' fueling this despicable trade, know this: you are not invisible, and we are targeting you next with the full might of the law.”