Naypyidaw police arrested 18 people who were found in an illegal massage parlor and karaoke bar inside the Jade City Hotel on July 3.
The raid was carried out after police received a tip directing them to the hotel. They arrived just before midnight and arrested the massage parlor’s manager, a hotel supervisor, eight massage therapists, and eight karaoke singers.
Police also confiscated a TV, loud speakers, a computer, and beer and wine bottles, which were kept as evidence.
According to Eleven, the massage parlor’s managers will be charged for running the massage parlor and karaoke bar illegally. The raid was part of a wider effort by police to crack down on illegal brothels.
Sex work is illegal in Myanmar but frequently happens at massage parlors, beauty salons, karaoke lounges, and guest houses.
After three massage parlors were busted in Yangon’s Sanchaung neighborhood in April 2015, a police officer said: “Police regularly close those illegal massage parlors, but then they open again shortly afterwards.”
The Jade City Hotel’s Facebook page shows that it regularly hosts events run by Myanmar government institutions, the EU, the UN, and ASEAN.
