City officials in Methuen on Tuesday shut down three more day spas suspected of running as human trafficking fronts, bringing the total to five establishments closed since Sunday, Mayor D.J. Beauregard said.
The city’s Department of Health, Human Services, and Inspections issued cease-and-desist orders to Oriental Spa, 119 Swan St., Yellow Lilly Day Spa and Lavendar Spa, both located at 17 Baldwin St.
The three spas also have been referred to the Methuen Police Department for criminal investigation, Beauregard said.
“We are moving aggressively to identify and close these businesses, to crack down on the evildoers who profit from human suffering, and to hold landlords, traffickers, and johns accountable,” Beauregard said in a statement.
“The demand created by johns is what fuels this evil criminal industry, and as Police Chief Scott McNamara indicated previously, we are targeting you next with the full might of the law,” Beuregard said. “Methuen has zero tolerance for human trafficking — period.”
The closures were prompted after inspectors discovered “unlicensed activity, evidence of unlawful habitation within the commercial spaces, and multiple code violations including unpermitted construction, blocked egress, and unsanitary conditions,” the statement said.
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Two other spas, Beauty Garden Spa on Wallace Street and Eastern Bodywork Therapy on Hampshire Street, were shut down Sunday and Monday.
The manager of Beauty Garden Spa, Suping Zhu, 38, of Flushing, N.Y., is facing criminal charges in Lawrence District Court.
On Monday, Zhu pleaded not guilty to human trafficking and prostitution charges for allegedly running a house of ill repute, according to officials and court records.
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She was ordered held on $25,000 cash bail, court records show. Her lawyer declined to comment on the case.
The investigation into Beauty Garden Spa was prompted by complaints from residents, Methuen police said.
Beauregard announced Monday that he is launching a Human Trafficking Task Force to combat sex trafficking operations in the city, drawing resources from the city’s inspections and health divisions, police department, and nonprofit agencies.
He also has ordered a citywide assessment of suspected locations.
“The progress of the past week should send an unmistakable signal,” Beauregard said. “If you are operating, enabling, or fueling human trafficking in the City of Methuen — whether as a trafficker, a landlord, or a john — we will find you, and we will shut you down.”
Material from prior Globe stories was used in this report.
Tonya Alanez can be reached at tonya.alanez@globe.com. Follow her @talanez.