Mother and son sentenced after prostitution sting at Tacoma massage parlors

A mother and son accused of running Tacoma-area massage parlors that offered sex acts were sentenced Wednesday.

Pierce County prosecutors said Aiqin Jiang, 45, and Liang Shi, 21, own seven Lincoln District massage parlors, which were targeted in a prostitution sting in September.

Superior Court Judge Katherine Stolz sentenced Jiang to three years in prison, after she pleaded guilty to seven counts of promoting prostitution, two counts of prostitution and attempted unlawful use of proceeds of criminal profiteering.

Shi pleaded guilty to permitting prostitution and two counts of unlawful operation of a business. He got a suspended sentence, which means he won’t have to serve additional jail time if he avoids trouble with the law.

Employees at the massage parlors referred to Jiang as “Lady Boss,” Deputy Prosecutor John Neeb wrote in the declaration for determination of probable cause.

Jiang and Shi apologized to the court at their sentencings.

As part of the sting, undercover detectives posed as customers at the businesses.

“On every occasion, the officer was offered sexual contact, most commonly in the form of a ‘hand job’ or ‘happy ending,’ Neeb wrote in the probable cause declaration.

This story was originally published January 4, 2017 at 3:51 PM with the headline "Mother and son sentenced after prostitution sting at Tacoma massage parlors."