Still up and running
‘Extra’ from masseuse
AN ‘Open’ sign continues to hang from the door of a Bell Park massage parlour offering unlicensed sex services just metres from two schools.
The Geelong Advertiser this week revealed at least one worker at the Separation St parlour — across the road from North Geelong Secondary College and just a few doors down from Holy Family Primary School — was offering “extras” to customers.
The Geelong Advertiser obtained a recording of a masseuse at the parlour negotiating an additional fee for sexual services.
The investigation came after the owner of Geelong licenced brothel Lorraine Starr said unlicensed brothels masquerading as massage parlours were “out of control” in the Bell Park area.
Police did not directly say whether they would investigate claims of illegal brothels operating in the Bell Park area, when asked by the Geelong Advertiser on Monday.
“Local police across the state work closely with Victoria Police’s Sex Industry Coordination Unit, councils and other law enforcement agen- cies to tackle the illegal brothel industry,” a police spokeswoman said. “At a local level, Geelong police continue to investigate and respond to the issue and work with the council where required. “We encourage anyone who suspects that they know of an illegal brothel to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.”
Earlier this week police said the unlicensed sex industry had flourished across the state.
“The illegal sex industry as a whole has grown over recent years,” Victoria Police Sergeant Anthoula Moutis said. “We think some of the reasons for this are that the massage industry is unregulated and the growth of the internet allows anyone who wishes to advertise sexual services to do so.
“The illegal sector covers everything from illegal brothels operating under the guise of legitimate massage businesses (this is the majority that we see) to some karaoke ¬venues providing sexual services, nail salons, hair salons and apartments.”
Police believe there are hundreds of illegal brothels operating across Victoria, but are unable to comment on specific regions or a statewide figure, Sgt Moutis said.