Newsday probe finds Suffolk men not arrested in massage spa sex trade
Nearly 400 women were arrested at illicit Suffolk spas while men who bought sex escaped arrest, raising questions about who police are really targeting.
District Attorney Raymond A. Tierney indicted 10 defendants and four corporate defendants on June 25 in a prostitution ring and illegal massage business enterprise that generated more than $1 million. On Long Island, nearly 400 women have been arrested at illicit spas while Nassau and Suffolk police have not arrested men for buying sex there in the past five years.
A Suffolk resident identified as Bill had been buying sex at Long Island massage spas for years and did not expect to be arrested, and the customer base includes thousands of Long Island men who frequent illicit massage businesses.
A foot spa in a St. James strip mall owned by Suffolk County Clerk Vincent Puleo had online reviews referencing sexual contact and no massage license. Over 10 hours of observation across three days, only men were seen entering and exiting the spa. Puleo later terminated the lease through spokesman Todd Shapiro.
Suffolk police have kept up pressure on the spas themselves. On July 30, 2025, officers arrested two women at Wonderful Body and Foot Spa Massage in East Northport after a community complaint, charging them with felony unauthorized practice of a profession and misdemeanor prostitution. Massage-parlor raids in Suffolk produced at least nine arrests from September 2025 through January 2026.
Tierney’s indictment tied the pattern to a wider alleged network operating in Suffolk County and Queens County from February 2025 through June 2026. Search warrants led to the seizure of cash and gold bars, freezes on bank accounts and moves to seize two properties.
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