Feb. 6 Smithtown Vanilla 139 Spa Raid Nets Arrest, 13 Violations

Suffolk County police and Town of Smithtown officials closed Vanilla 139 Spa at 139 East Main Street after an investigation that led to an arrest and multiple safety violations. Officers executed the operation at approximately 2:30 p.m. on Feb. 6 and the Smithtown Fire Marshal and Building Department subsequently issued 13 violations that resulted in the premises being deemed unsafe for human occupancy.

The operation involved Suffolk County Fourth Precinct Crime Section officers, Fourth Squad detectives and Property Section officers working alongside the Town of Smithtown Fire Marshal and building inspectors. During the investigation, officers arrested Hui Lin, 59, of Flushing. Lin was charged with Prostitution and Unauthorized Practice of a Profession, was issued a Desk Appearance Ticket and is to be arraigned at First District Court in Central Islip on a later date.

Smithtown officials identified the violations as fire-code and building offenses; the town's action to declare the site unsafe means the business must remain closed until required corrections are made and inspections are cleared. The closure affects the block on East Main Street near the downtown stretch where retail and service businesses operate side by side, and it may require property owners or managers to file paperwork before reopening.

Local reporting described the operation as targeting a business described variously as a "spa" and a "massage parlor," and one account referred to unlicensed massage services. The record supplied to reporters did not include a detailed listing of the 13 violations, and no on-the-record quotes from police or town officials were included in the materials reviewed. Only one person was reported arrested in connection with the Feb. 6 action; the available materials do not indicate additional detentions, seizures or whether the establishment has prior violations.

Materials accompanying coverage noted a separate Jan. 20 incident at a Connecticut spa that involved two women from Flushing, but that earlier case is not connected to the Smithtown raid in the records provided and should not be conflated with the Feb. 6 enforcement action.

For Smithtown residents and neighboring Main Street merchants, the raid underscores ongoing public-safety and code-enforcement work by county and town authorities. The town’s declaration of the premises as unsafe aims to protect customers and workers while inspections and any required repairs proceed. Court proceedings for the arrested individual will provide further legal clarity; town building records and the Suffolk County Police press release are expected to supply additional specifics on the 13 violations and timing for any reopening.