Raymond L. Smith, a massage therapist who was employed at Massage Envy in Boca Raton plead guilty on May 10, 2016 to criminal charges that he sexually battery a female client. Smith entered the plea in lieu of going to trial on the criminal charges. Raymond Smith, who was employed at a Massage Envy franchise located at 7050 West Palmetto Park Road in Boca Raton, Florida, was accused of touching the vagina of his client during a massage appointment at Massage Envy without her consent in December 2014. According to Florida Department of Health records, Smith was licensed as a massage therapist in Florida since 2008.
Adam Horowitz previously announced the filing of a civil lawsuit against the West Boca Raton Massage Envy franchise alleging that Raymond Smith sexually abused his client, who is also the victim in the criminal case. The lawsuit remains pending.
The conviction of Raymond Smith is another in a long series of alleged criminal activity involving massage therapists at Massage Envy locations across the country for sex crimes. For instance, James Dieter was arrested on criminal charges for a sexual assault of female client at a Massage Envy franchise in West Goshen, Pennsylvania. In March 2015, Travis Schuler was arrested on charges that he sexually assaulted a female client at a Massage Envy in Harris County, Texas. It was later disclosed that Schuler also assaulted another female client at another Massage Envy franchise in a neighboring county.
Attorney Adam Horowitz, who has represented multiple women who reported incidents of sexual assault at various Massage Envy locations, stated: "Women who receive therapeutic massages place great trust in their therapists. There aren't many other situations in which a person would be semi-nude in a prone position in a dimly-lit room with a complete stranger. It's a horrific betrayal when someone goes to a massage for relaxation but gets exploitation."
Our attorneys are experienced in filing lawsuits on behalf of victims of sex assault by massage therapists. If you or someone you know has been a victim of a sexual battery, please contact our law firm at (954) 641-2100 or send an e-mail to sexual abuse attorney Adam Horowitz at adam@adamhorowitzlaw.com.