By Christopher Haraden

The owner of a Hull massage business has been arrested and charged with running a prostitution operation at the Sunny Hull Spa in the Kenberma shopping district.

On Jan. 9, Hull Police arrested Lianli Qu, 54, and charged her with sexual conduct for a fee, trafficking of a person for sexual servitude, and maintaining a house of prostitution. Police also seized three iPhones, a customer payment ledger, and $5,293 in cash from the Kenberma Place storefront at 522 Nantasket Ave.

According to police, Qu took over the business in October from Yuying Hu, who had owned the business since June. Neither Qu nor Hu are currently licensed massage therapists; in paperwork filed with the Hull Town Clerk, they described the business as a “Rolfing service.” Rolfing Structural Integration, named for Dr. Ida P. Rolf, is a decades-old form of deep-tissue bodywork that is similar to massage and is used to relieve tension and treat pain. According to the Massachusetts Board of Registration of Massage Therapy, practitioners of Rolf Structural Integration are exempt from state licensing laws. Hull’s health department became suspicious of the business last year and reported these concerns to the police.

Lianli Qu was arrested on Jan. 9. [Hull Police photo]

Qu advertised Sunny Hull Spa on several “known adult sex websites” that state and federal investigators regularly monitor for illegal activity, Hull Police Officer Leanne Marshalsea wrote in her report detailing the arrest.

“It is known that this type of massage parlor is a front for prostitution,” Marshalsea wrote. “Customers frequent these parlors looking for more than a massage: specifically ‘happy endings.’ This is done by the customer paying for the price of a massage, which generally goes to the business, and then to the monetary ‘tip’ which goes to the masseuse for extra service.”

In December, police officers watched as at least three separate “lone male” customers patronized the business and then questioned them after they left; all three are cooperating as witnesses in the continuing investigation.

According to the police report, Qu is from a neighborhood in New York City that is “a known illegal point of entry where these women are introduced into the sex trade.” Marshalsea reported that after closing the spa for the day, “Qu would not leave the business during closing hours and would sleep inside the business.”

“Based on the knowledge of investigators and speaking with state and federal officers who are involved in sex trafficking, it is known that Asian style massage parlors rotate the women through the massage parlors and transport them, as they do not have vehicles,” Marshalsea continued, adding that the businesses typically contain “sleeping quarters within the parlor, as the women do not leave the building,” and “networks of Asian-style massage parlors are used to employ Asian women that are illegal or undocumented immigrants.”

Hull Police arrested Qu with the help of Canton Police Officer Thomas Mei, who is fluent in Mandarin. She told officers that all of her identifying documents were in New York, and that she purchased the business from her “friend Lilly” but planned to sell it. When officers informed her of the charges, “Qu responded multiple times, ‘Impossible,’” according to the police report.

After the arrest, the Hull health and building departments were notified, as was the state licensing board, and the business is closed.

Police Chief John Dunn said the investigation remains active.

“The Hull Police Department strives to enhance the quality of life in the Town of Hull,” Dunn said Wednesday. “People should feel comfortable and safe living and visiting our town. Sadly, places like this give a bad name to legitimate establishments.”

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