Report: Pawtucket Spa Owner In RICO Case Also Linked To Fraud

PAWTUCKET — The owner of a local massage parlor who recently pleaded no contest to a racketeering charge and forfeited around $650,000 is now under federal investigation for her ties to a South Korean national who was arrested last month at JFK Airport.

Grace Kwon, 57, owner of Harmony Spa, is a corporate officer for several Boston-area physical therapy entities run by Chang Goo Yoon, a man banned from practicing in several states but who nevertheless set up practices in Massachusetts, The Boston Globe reports. Yoon now faces federal charges and is accused of fraudulent billing practices.

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Pawtucket police started investigating Kwon's ties to Yoon around the same time they started investigating allegations that she and others were running a sex-for-hire business. Kwon was suspected of cashing checks from Blue Cross Blue Shield issued to other people and keeping the money, according to search warrant affidavits viewed by the Boston newspaper.

A spokeswoman for Attorney General Peter F. Neronha said that the Pawtucket police are working with federal authorities.

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