SINGAPORE – The crackdown on unlicensed massage establishments continues to gain momentum after the Central Police Division conducted a raid targeting outlets in Jalan Besar, Lavender and Little India.

Following the operation on Friday (Jan 5), a total of 26 women aged between 24 and 40 are being investigated by the Police for their suspected involvement in vice-related activities in unlicensed massage establishments.

In a media release on Sunday, the police said action will also be taken against the owners of seven massage establishments for offences under the Massage Establishments Act and Women’s Charter.

The authorities have been ramping up efforts to weed out the unlicensed massage parlours after proposed changes to impose harsher penalties against unlicensed massage establishments were passed in Parliament in November last year.

Under the revised Massage Establishments Act, the penalty for unlicensed operators will be a maximum fine of S$10,000 (up from S$1,000), or a maximum jail term of two years, or both. Previously, there was no jail term.

Speaking in Parliament last November, Mrs Josephine Teo, Second Minister for Home Affairs, stressed that the enhanced laws were more than just about “raising fines”.

“We are adopting a suite of measures… that would give the extra teeth necessary to clamp down on unlicensed massage establishments,” she said at the second reading of the Bill.

The new legislation broadens the authority of the police, allowing them to shut down an unlicensed venue if illegal activities are still being carried out there while the operator is undergoing criminal proceedings.

Irresponsible landlords will also be taken to task if they knowingly lease their premises to unlicensed operators.