A woman awaiting trial in state court for allegedly operating a prostitution business is now also accused of bribing a federal agent.
The U.S. attorney filed a criminal complaint in U.S. District Court on Tuesday charging Biyu Situ with two counts of bribery.
According to the complaint, Situ, 47, gave a federal agent $5,000 to protect her business from law enforcement raids and inspections. She is charged with giving the agent another $5,000 to help her gain U.S. citizenship without having to take a test. The charges accuse Situ of paying the bribes on June 15.
The agent participated with Honolulu police in a Jan. 28, 2015, raid of Mayflower, a massage parlor that was operated in two adjacent apartments on the 27th floor of Century Center, according to an affidavit from Homeland Security Investigations. HSI is part of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
State business records list Situ as the operator of Mayflower LLC.
Honolulu police did not arrest Situ in the raid but did arrest two other women for prostitution. In a follow-up interview at the Century Center apartments two days later, HSI says Situ told the agent that a friend who also operates a massage parlor in Honolulu was paying an unknown law enforcement officer money for protection from prostitution raids and that she wanted the same deal.
HSI says when the agent told Situ it was illegal for him to leak information about law enforcement operations to her or to protect a criminal enterprise, “Situ laughed it off and continued to proposition (the agent).” When the agent again declined, HSI says Situ offered the agent and his partner massages by her and another female, which the agents also declined.
The agent met with Situ in June, after HSI says Situ asked a confidential informant for a referral to a
U.S. immigration official who she could pay up to $10,000 per month for protection at her new massage parlor, Blue Angel, in downtown Honolulu.
This time HSI says the agent agreed to provide Situ what she asked for and Situ gave the agent
$5,000 in cash. She gave him another $5,000 in cash for help in gaining U.S. citizenship because she said she had previously failed the written test due to her difficulty with English. HSI says Situ also offered the agent $500 to $2,000 for each girl he recruited for her business.
An Oahu grand jury returned a secret indictment in June charging Situ and another person with racketeering for owning or operating an illegal business. The indictment remains under seal because authorities have not apprehended Situ’s co-defendant.
Situ’s trial in that case is scheduled for next month. She remains free after posting $100,000 bail.
The state indictment against Situ was the first one secured by Honolulu Prosecutor Keith Kaneshiro in his latest approach to combat prostitution. He has since secured two more prostitution-related indictments against three other defendants.
Situ’s lawyer did not respond to a request for comment regarding latest charges.
