How Europe’s largest brothel suddenly finds itself at the center of a Chinese espionage case

How Europe’s largest brothel suddenly finds itself at the center of a Chinese espionage case | News

The Chinese owner of the largest brothel in Europe may be involved in a spectacular espionage case. This was reported by the German newspaper ‘Bild’. The authorities would specifically focus on the ninth floor of the infamous club ‘Pascha’ in Cologne.

LOOK. This is the infamous club ‘Pascha’ in Cologne

‘Pascha’ is an eleven-storey apartment building in Cologne that functions entirely as a brothel. Seven floors contain 126 apartments rented by prostitutes. The building also houses a hotel, nightclub, restaurant, launderette, tanning salon and several bistros.

The mega brothel on Hornstrasse has been known in Germany for years. However, the club went bankrupt during the corona crisis, as a result of a prostitution ban. A year later, in 2021, the Chinese Jing Hu (46) bought the apartment building for 11 million euros and hired a German lawyer.

Smuggling gang

According to ‘Bild’, the German authorities are investigating both Jing Hu (46) and the German lawyer. Jing Hu, owner of ‘Pascha’, would only function as a front man for a Chinese smuggling gang that uses the brothel to launder criminal money. The gang, with which the German lawyer is also linked, is said to demand up to 360,000 euros from wealthy Chinese, Arabs and Indians in exchange for residence permits in Germany.

In that investigation, the German federal police stormed the villas of lawyers, tax experts, entrepreneurs and civil servants throughout Germany two weeks ago with about a thousand officers. A total of 38 suspicious people were targeted.

Ninth floor

However, the police suspect that there is more going on. The brothel hotel on the ninth floor, which is not accessible to regular customers of ‘Pascha’, attracts attention. An overnight stay costs 199 euros, but regular brothel visitors do not have access to the floor. It is believed that Chinese secret agents use this ‘discreet’ depth to recruit new spies in Germany unnoticed.

Spy discount

The brothel reacts with amusement to the accusations in ‘Bild’ on social media. “Our discount for spies is now valid for everyone,” the website says. Until mid-May, an overnight stay in the hotel on floor 9 costs only 169 euros instead of 199 euros. A ‘spy breakfast’ and newspaper from ‘Bild’ are included in the price.

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