Massage Envy Therapists Accused Of Sexual Assault By Over 180 Women

Spa chain Massage Envy came under fire after its therapists were accused of sexual misconduct by more than 180 female customers, according to a report by BuzzFeed.

The complaints are from over the years and reported at multiple spa outlets from across the country. The customers alleged that male therapists had groped and penetrated them while on the massage table.

The report published Sunday cited police reports, lawsuits and other complaints registered against Massage Envy spas, their employees and the national company.

Several of the accusers reportedly also complained to the management of the spa chain that operates more than 1,200 spas across the country about the alleged assaults.

Susan Ingram from West Chester, Pennsylvania, told Buzzfeed about her interactions at one of the spa outlets in 2015, with a massage therapist, James Deiter, who allegedly pressed his erection against Ingram, groped her breasts and even penetrated her vagina with his fingers.

Ingram said she then complained to the outlet's manager who declined to interrupt Deiter’s ongoing massage of another client.

“I begged her to stop the massage and get him away from the woman,” Ingram said, according to a court transcript. “She said she could not do that, and she invited me in to talk about my services ... I said to her, ‘Nicole, he stuck his fingers in my vagina less than an hour ago.’” Following this, Ingram went to the police who then interviewed Deiter that afternoon. He admitted to assaulting not just Ingram but other Massage Envy clients as well.

He also confessed to needing help and pleaded guilty to sexually molesting a total of nine women while working at Massage Envy between fall 2014 and spring 2015.

According to the Buzzfeed report, several massage therapists were kept on staff despite multiple complaints of inappropriate behavior. Other outlets fired the therapists but never reported their offenses to concerned authorities like the police, and allowed the alleged harassers to pursue other professional opportunities with a clean record.

“Massage Envy is a partner in crime,” Ingram told Buzzfeed. “They had every opportunity, on multiple occasions, to remove him from his position, and they chose not to.” Several other women also came forward to speak about similar encounters they allegedly had during spa and massage sessions at Massage Envy outlets.

According to the report, the chain told Buzzfeed it would not be “appropriate to respond point-by-point” to questions “because of pending litigation” and the confidential documents involved. Meanwhile, Melanie Hansen, general counsel of Massage Envy Franchising, was cited as saying the company had worked to create the industry’s “most stringent, rigorous policies” for hiring, screening, and training therapists.

“We hold franchise owners accountable to our policies and, when we say nothing is more important to us than treating clients with respect and giving them a safe, professional experience, we mean it,” Hansen said in an email to BuzzFeed News.

In another statement reported by NY Daily News, Massage Envy said: “Each of these incidents are heartbreaking for us and for the franchisees that operate Massage Envy locations,” the company said in a statement. “We are constantly listening, learning and looking at how we can do more, including how we support franchised locations with best practices in handling these incidents and supporting their clients.”