Madison County massage therapist charged with criminal sexual abuse, battery
A 54-year-old Maryville man has been charged with sexually abusing two clients at an Edwardsville spa where he worked as a massage therapist.
Madison County Associate Circuit Court Judge Janet Heflin on Friday issued charges of criminal sexual abuse and battery against Christopher S. McKee, 54, of Wellington Lane. As of Friday morning, McKee was being held at the Madison County Jail on $30,000 bond.
The charges allege that McKee sexually abused a 32-year-old woman during a massage on Jan. 16 and that he committed battery to a 32-year-old woman on Nov. 12, 2020. The alleged abuse occurred while he was giving massages at Float Edwardsville,
McKee was arrested on Thursday.
In a release from Float Edwardsville distributed by Sivia Law, spa owner Karen Swanner said she wasn’t made aware of the complaint or that an arrest warrant had been issued against McKee. She said she would have taken the initiative to investigate and act accordingly in the interest of her customers.
“We are investigating the allegations and want to emphasize to our customers that this type of behavior is not in compliance with the high standard of service we work to provide.” Swanner said.
While the business remains open, Swanner said she will be implement “additional sexual assault training protocols and an updated system for customer feedback.”
“If you, or someone you know may have been affected by a similar instance at Float Edwardsville,please reach out to us so we can take action and conduct our own investigation,” the statement said.
The Edwardsville Police Department encourages anyone who has any information regarding these alleged incidents, or may have been a victim of McKee, to contact Edwardsville Police Department Detective Mark Lask at (618) 656-2131
