Staff report

HUBBARD — The Mahoning Valley Human Trafficking Task Force seized the cellphone of Trumbull County Commissioner Rick Hernandez as part of an ongoing investigation into alleged human trafficking, the Mahoning County Sheriff’s Office confirmed.

The investigation centers on the 3C Foot Spa, a business located in a building owned by Hernandez on Youngstown Hubbard Road in Hubbard. The spa was raided by the task force in August 2024 following allegations of commercial sex trafficking, with Hubbard police stating that the investigation began in February 2023.

The spa was raided again six months later, and Furong Li, 55, of Flushing, New York, was arrested and charged with solicitation, promoting prostitution and practicing medicine without a license, according to a Feb. 28 news release from the Hubbard City Police Department.

An arrest warrant was issued for Li on Thursday after she failed to appear at her arraignment before Judge Ronald Rice in Trumbull County Common Pleas Court. She was indicted on the charges by a grand jury earlier this month.

A woman, 49-year-old Yuli Guo, was arrested during a related raid on a Youngstown massage parlor and charged with soliciting sex acts, though she has since been released.

The Mahoning County Sheriff’s Office and the task force have not released further details about the phone seizure or its connection to the investigation. No charges have been filed against Hernandez and authorities have not confirmed whether the 3C Foot Spa raids are directly linked to the warrant served on him.

Commissioner Tony Bernard declined to comment on the matter. Hernandez and Commissioner Denny Malloy couldn’t be reached for comment.