LYNNWOOD — Prosecutors have charged a Federal Way man with indecent liberties after two women came forward claiming he sexually assaulted them during massages.
Police say Shinkyu Kim was not a licensed therapist but was preforming massages at Happy Feet. The business has since closed and the owner relinquished her business license to the city, Lynnwood police Cmdr. Jim Nelson said.
The state Department of Health has no record of Kim, 66, having a license to practice massage therapy. It is unclear how long he worked at the business.
Lynnwood detectives received separate reports within days of each other last year. The women provided similar details, saying that the massages were suspect from the start.
One woman, 29, reported that Kim told her to remove her underwear. She told police she was uncomfortable but didn’t know how to react at the time.
She reported that Kim touched her genitals and massaged her breasts. The woman told police Kim hugged her before he left the room.
She felt fearful of the defendant, who was larger and stronger than her, Snohomish County deputy prosecutor Elise Deschenes wrote in the charging papers.
“The defendant wore an outfit similar to scrubs, which made (the woman) feel like he was a professional and she was perhaps overreacting,” Deschenes wrote.
A second woman told police that Kim wrapped a sheet around her head and she was unable to see. She fought to keep her underwear on and told Kim she only wanted a shoulder massage.
She said Kim’s hands were all over and he didn’t appear to be a professional therapist.
The woman, 28, reported that Kim touched her genitals.
He pulled her underwear down and she told him not to touch her anymore. He asked her if she was going to flip over. She told him to get out of the room.
She left and called 911.
Both women reported that during the massages they could feel that Kim was aroused.
Prosecutors say Kim has ties to Korea and they plan to ask a judge to require him to surrender his passport. They also will ask a judge to prohibit Kim from working at any massage businesses while the case is pending.
Diana Hefley: 425-339-3463, hefley@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @dianahefley
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