'It's certainly something that is an issue': TDLR speaks on human trafficking in Texas
If you or someone you know would like to report activity of human trafficking, you can contact the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 1-888-373-7888.
AUSTIN (KXAN) — A massage establishment in Round Rock was closed down by the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR) on Thursday for suspected human trafficking, adding to the list of recent closures in Texas.
Earlier this month in North Texas, two massage parlors closed down for suspected human trafficking. In Galveston County, two other illegal massage parlors were also raided as well earlier this month.
In 2023, TDLR gained the authority to issue emergency orders to halt the operation of any massage establishment if human trafficking is suspected. Since then, data provided by TDLR shows there have been 29 emergency orders issued, 24 orders of which were issued in 2025.
A total of 49 physical addresses have been affected, 33 of those in 2025.
"We've been very grateful to the legislature for empowering us, giving us the authority to make these emergency orders that close these establishments while we sort out what's happening," said Tela Mange, a spokeswoman with TDLR.
Through much investigation, Mange said TDLR found evidence there was human trafficking activity occurring at ML Massage, the massage establishment in Round Rock.
"[TDLR] had received information that information that sexual services were being provided at the massage establishment," Mange said. "There was a fraudulent massage therapist license in talking with the employee—she'd been there less than a week. She was living in the establishment. She wasn't allowed to leave."
TDLR told KXAN the woman is now back with her family in California.
According to research done by Polaris, an anti-trafficking organization, there is an estimated 7,500 to 9,000 illicit massage businesses (IMB) in the nation. The estimate of how much the average IMB can net is around $250,000.
Kristi Hayes, Central Texas' Regional Director for Unbound Now, an anti-trafficking organization, says a lot of people who enter human trafficking situations are often lured under false pretenses.
"We've seen women who are trying to supply for their family, and you have moms who are really trying to be someone who wants work," Hayes said. "So they are offered this—what they think is legitimate work."
Hayes said once an individual is in a human trafficking situation, it can be hard to escape.
"Many times, their documents are confiscated, their transportation restricted, they don't have a place to live, and it really leaves them with no place else—it leaves them stuck," Hayes said.
To avoid a human trafficking situation, Hayes emphasized to look for red flags, as traffickers "look for vulnerabilities."
"They look for a need, and then they try to meet that need," Hayes said. "Making sure there's references, making sure you've talked to other people who have worked for them, just really doing the research to see if this is a reputable business."