Police: Holistic masseur sexually assaulted Las Vegas woman
A man described by Las Vegas police as a “holistic masseur” is accused of sexually assaulting a woman who paid for a massage.
Francisco Tovar-Lugo, 58, was arrested April 29 on charges of sexual assault and open and gross lewdness. Police said they are now trying to determine if Tovar-Lugo victimized others.
A Las Vegas police arrest report for Tovar-Lugo states a woman told investigators in April she was looking to pay for a massage for her boyfriend as a gift.
She was referred by a friend to the “holistic masseur” Tovar-Lugo, police said, but her boyfriend wasn’t available at the appointment time so he encouraged her to get the massage. She agreed to do so.
Tovar-Lugo arrived at her apartment on April 8. Tovar-Lugo, the woman said, told her “he would be able to heal her without explaining how.”
The woman said when the massage started everything seemed normal. Then he started to sexually assault her.
“Don’t move, I have to do it to heal you,” the woman quoted Tovar-Lugo as saying.
Police said the woman told Tovar-Lugo what he did was wrong.
“She then lied to Francisco and said that her boyfriend has a camera in the kitchen and that if he saw that he would be very angry,” police said. “When this was said, Francisco’s demeanor immediately changed and he refused to look to the corner of the kitchen.”
“He then began to try and explain his actions stating that sometimes he has to do things that are uncomfortable to him in order to heal people, that (she) should just keep what happened to herself,” police said.
The woman said she talked to an acquaintance about Tovar-Lugo. The acquaintance told her “the same thing happened to her with Francisco.”
Police issued a press release Monday saying they are trying to determine if others were victimized by Tovar-Lugo.
Anyone with information is urged to call detectives at 702-828-3421. Tipsters who wish to remain anonymous are urged to call Crime Stoppers at 702-385-5555 or online at www.crimestoppersofnv.com.
Las Vegas Justice Court records show Tovar-Lugo is scheduled for a preliminary hearing on June 2. He remained in custody at the Clark County Detention Center on Thursday morning.
Contact Glenn Puit by email at gpuit@reviewjournal.com. Follow @GlennatRJ on Twitter.
