Police release 21 names in Maine Zumba sex case

KENNEBUNK, Maine (AP) - Police on Monday released the first round of names of people they say paid for sex with a Zumba fitness instructor charged with running a prostitution operation out of her studio.

Justice Thomas Warren earlier Monday denied a motion seeking to block disclosure of the names of people accused of being johns at the studio in the seaside community Kennebunk.

An attorney for two of the people had filed a complaint asking the names be kept private and criminal charges not be pursued. But attorney Stephen Schwartz said an appeal was unlikely.

Kennebunk police Monday evening released the names of 21 people who have been issued summonses to appear in court.

Police said Friday more than 150 people are suspected of being prostitution clients of Zumba instructor Alexis Wright, and the delay in releasing their names heightened the curiosity of town residents who had heard the list could include lawyers, law enforcement officers and well-known people. The Associated Press was trying to contact the people named.

Wright, from nearby Wells, has pleaded not guilty to 106 counts of prostitution, invasion of privacy and other charges. Her business partner faces 59 misdemeanor counts.

The prostitution charges and ensuing publicity, which reached across the country and beyond, came as a shock in this small town, which is well-known for its ocean beaches, old sea captains' mansions and the neighboring town of Kennebunkport, home to the Bush family's Walker's Point summer compound.