Prostitution racket busted at spa centre

A prostitution racket being run under the guise of a spa centre was busted at Tank Road in Karol Bagh, the police said on Sunday. The police arrested two men and rescued eight women from the centre.

According to the police, the investigation began on October 1. During the investigation, a decoy customer from the Anti-Narcotics Cell was sent to the spa centre. The officer approached the spa’s reception to inquire about massage services with additional offerings. The staff offered him a choice of eight women and requested an additional payment of Rs 3,000 for facilitating prostitution.

After confirming illegal activities, the decoy signaled the police team, which entered the premises. During the raid, the police arrested the spa manager, identified as Ishwar Dass, and an associate, Sikendra Thakur, and rescued eight women.

They also recovered a customer entry register, two condoms and Rs 4,500 marked currency provided by the decoy customer.

The rescued women were taken into custody for questioning. A case was registered under Sections 3, 4 and 5 of the Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act.

During interrogation, the accused admitted that the prostitution racket was being run under the guise of the spa centre for financial gain. The spa manager revealed that the racket had been operational for the last two years.

The police said further investigation was on to identify any wider network and determine the involvement of other individuals connected to the operation.

Ishwar Dass (69) of Rani Bagh and Sikendra Thakur (42) of Pandav Nagar are in police custody. Confirming the arrests, the Deputy Commissioner of Police, Central District, Nidhin Valsan, said investigation would continue to identify other persons associated with the racket.