A Colorado Springs woman accused of using a massage parlor as a prostitution front is facing multiple felony and misdemeanor charges, including pimping and money laundering, according to arrest documents.
Police arrested 30-year-old Shirley Briar Rose King, also known as Akira Summers, on Sept. 22 in an undercover operation that was the culmination of a nearly yearlong investigation, officials said.
King first came to the attention of Colorado Springs law enforcement in November, when they began receiving tips that she was operating an illegal business, arrest papers stated. Further investigation revealed that King owned and operated Sutra Healing Center at 576 Marquette Drive, in the Security-Widefield area.
In May, investigators uncovered a ledger believed to belong to King that displayed client names, services provided and monies paid, officials said. At least one service was thought to include a sexual act prohibited in Colorado prostitution statutes.
Shirley King
An undercover detective reached out to King in August and met with her at the Sutra Healing Center. During the meeting, the detective arranged for King to provide four to six girls as “entertainment” for a party, according to probable cause documents. The undercover officer offered a $100 deposit as a down payment, but King refused to take the money directly from him, asking him instead to place it on a table marked "donations," officials said.
Officials said referring to the money as a donation is “a common tactic in prostitution scenarios.”
During subsequent conversations with King, the detective learned that she had several girls in her employ, that they sometimes engaged in sex acts with clients, and that King kept a portion of their earnings. When the detective suggested that King was pimping the girls, she remarked that she served as a “life coach,” according to the affidavit.
In September, King allegedly gave the detective a massage featuring a “body slide,” an act during which both participants are nude and engage in close physical contact. The detective paid King for the massage, officials said.
About a week after the massage, the detective and several other undercover officers met with King and four other women in northeast Colorado Springs. When the women said they would have sexual intercourse with the men for an agreed-upon price, detectives from multiple units raided the meet and arrested King, police said.
King, who is currently out on bail, spoke with Gazette news partner KKTV and alleged that police made false claims about her business. Police officials said an investigation is underway to determine if the undercover officer, Det. Trey White, used inappropriate tactics in allowing sexual contact during the sting operation.
“As soon as this was brought to my attention, I immediately halted all investigations of this nature,” Colorado Springs police Chief Vince Niski told the news station. “This tactic does ‘cross the line’ when it comes to investigative strategies.”
Niski said the department is addressing the issue, but did not elaborate on White’s status.
Pimping and money laundering are Class 3 felonies in the state of Colorado. If convicted of both, King could face up to 24 years in prison and $1.5 million in fines, according to state criminal statutes.
The Sutra Healing Center is permanently closed, officials said.
Your Privacy Choices