LUBBOCK, Texas — Shaoping Wen, 64, and Xu Wang, 41, a mother and son duo who ran elicit massage parlors in Lubbock and in eastern New Mexico, both agreed to plead guilty to federal charges, according to court records obtained on Friday.
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The two were initially arrested back in March. In September, EverythingLubbock.com reported several new charges were brought against the duo in September. However, on November 7, Wen agreed to plead guilty to Conspiracy to Commit Interstate or Foreign Travel in Aid of Racketeering Enterprises. Wang agreed to plead guilty to Misprision of a Felony.
Shaoping Wen and Xu Wang
Federal court records said there were a total of eight parlors, three of which were in the Lubbock area. Two of the parlors were in Carlsbad, one in Roswell and one was in Clovis.
The women never left the massage parlors
Authorities started undercover operations after a concerned citizen reported potential human trafficking at a parlor in the Lubbock area. Court documents said the women who worked at the parlors were Chinese citizens. They were flown into the country to New York or California, then to Roswell. The women were taken straight from the airports to the massage parlors, and typically never left the business, according to court documents.
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One illicit parlor in Lubbock was found to have beds on the floor, with a surveillance system to watch the women.
Some concerned citizens near one of the Lubbock parlors said it seemed like the women lived at the business. On at least one occasion, a witness reported hearing a man grunting and a woman screaming. The next day they went to make sure everything was okay, and saw multiple women dressed in lingerie.
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Undercover officers went to check out the parlors more than once. Each time, the women offered sexual services. The officers told the women they changed their minds and left. After one of the Lubbock parlors were busted, Wen bonded the women out of the jail and took them back to the parlor.
Customer told police he brought cash for a ‘happy ending’
Court documents said Wen’s son, Wang, came to the U.S. from China on a travel visa in 2023. Wang helped his mother by transporting the women, paying bills, delivering groceries and other operational work.
According to court records, a customer at one of the illicit parlors told authorities he had paid for sexual services “on at least one occasion.” The man told police he would withdrawal $200 cash to keep on his person, just in case he was offered a “happy ending” at the parlor, court records said.
Tracking devices and money laundering
Court documents said authorities placed a mobile tracking device on Wen’s car in September of 2023. The tracking device helped authorities track down the location of each parlor.
According to federal court documents, Wen was seen at a casino east of Los Angeles in November. Court documents stated between 2018 and August 2023, Wen purchased about $1,527,410 in chips and cashed out with about $1,781,360. A federal complaint stated Wen was using “the most common method of laundering money at a casino.”
If her plea is accepted, Wen will be sentenced at a later date to no more than five years in prison. Wang faced up to three years in prison. The two remained in federal custody as of Friday.
