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Robert F. Bukaty / AP
Mark Strong Sr. leaves the Cumberland County Court House in Portland, Maine, on Jan. 18.
Closing arguments were delivered on Tuesday in the high-profile Zumba prostitution trial, with prosecutors arguing defendant Mark Strong was heavily involved in running the prostitution business and is guilty of much more than simply having an affair with a fitness instructor.
Strong is accused of helping his mistress Alexis Wright run a prostitution business out of her Kennebunk, Maine, fitness studio. He faces 12 counts of promotion of prostitution and one count of conspiracy to promote prostitution.
According to the Bangor Daily News, Deputy District Attorney Justina McGettigan reminded jurors of video proving Strong was aware that Wright was charging clients for sex and even used hidden cameras and Skype to watch the appointments in real time.
Prosecutors also attempted to prove that Strong had access to ledgers and bookkeeping, and that he helped organize and schedule appointments with clients.
“Why is she sending [the calendars and ledgers] to him? Not because she’s having an affair with him. Not because he just likes watching her have sex. It’s because he’s a business partner. He wants to know who the clients are, when she’s meeting them, what they’re doing and how much she’s getting paid,” McGettigan told the jury, according to the Bangor newspaper.
Lawyers for the 57-year-old Strong argued their client was enamored with the 30-year-old Zumba instructor, causing him to make bad choices that might be morally offensive but not illegal.
Earlier in the day a judge declined to throw out a motion by Strong’s defense team to throw out most of the charges against the Maine businessman. There were problems with the indictment and charges were added unnecessarily, his lawyers argued.
Strong has alleged he was unnecessarily targeted because of his research into misconduct in the Kennebunk Police Department.
Strong's lawyers argued that their client had an extramarital affair with Wright and co-signed a lease for the Zumba business, but was uninvolved in the prostitution operation.
Jury deliberations will begin Wednesday.
Joel Page / AP
Alexis Wright is accused of engaging in prostitution from her Zumba fitness studio in Kennebunk, Maine.
The Associated Press contributed to this report
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"Strong is accused of helping Zumba instructor Alexis Wright run a prostitution business out of her Kennebunk, Maine, fitness studio, and jury deliberations are expected to begin by the end of the day on Tuesday."
Maybe this woman was just exercising her back and hips. After all, it was a fitness studio. :)
With a penis in her mouth and every other hole she has... is great exercise for her too.
Wanted to be on that jury..damm it! 500 hours of video to watch.
"Wanted to be on that jury..damm it! 500 hours of video to watch."
You may have a point there, mike277! I've always tried to avoid jury duty in the past, but that case might be worth being on.
The last push by the prosecution.......
You guys couldn't get your lines out fast enough.
I can't blame you. Stories like this are chocolate cake for the mind.
If I was Mark Strong Sr, I wouldn't be too worried about the trial; assuming he is married, he should be worried about what his wife and her lawyer are cooking up. Chances are he's about to really get f*cked.
c'est la guerre, n'est pas?
I wouldn't touch her with your ..
Don't trust your soul to no backwoods Yankee lawyer, cuz the judge in the town has...
a little sex and these lilly white alcohol drinking pot smoking christians go nuts.
whereas a major majority of those accused are married the question is why do men use prostitutes when they have wives? maybe that nutcase Dr. Laura was right... your old man is out having sex with another woman because you aren't taking care of business at home... blame yourselves, not the horny old toad.
I should give lessons to you guys, about how to seduce a blow job from your wife.
I mean really. What better source than a lesbian that is fond of men?
Golden opportunity.
The men want something new...exciting.
Don't blame the wives, if the guys were any good in the sack, there'd be no issue about taking care of business at home.
Dirty old pervert.
Just legalize it already. It's ridiculous that it's not legal and regulated throughout the US.
Seriously - you can take a chick out, spend money on dinner, a show/movie/concert/whatever, drinks, etc and hope to get laid or take that money and pay to get laid.
Prostitution can be stopped about the same time people stop taking drugs (and don't just think illegal) or drinking.
@sleepinsadie
Correct, if everyone is of legal age, weather the man buys you dinner, movie, drinks, etc, and then gets laid, or if he just hands you cash, what is the difference? It's these dumb bible thumping morals some people have.
Europe has legal prostitution, and the ladies have to have a medical checkup each month, and then given a green card to prove they have no STD's. And they pay tax on their earnings also. Just think of the tax money each state has available.
And how many women hooked their way through college? I'm not saying I condone that, but it does happen, and will continue to happen. But if those women who can't satisfy their husbands would learn what the hell they are doing wrong, there wouldn't be that many john's out there either.
Meanwhile back at the White House...['...bad choices that might be morally offensive but not illegal...']
Zumba dis rite here!
Who cares if she was having sex for money.....what a waste of time and more importantly taxpayers money
So which is the biggest money pit... the war on the "Oldest Profession" or the, "War On Drugs"?
(They both are stupid)
I think a war on the usage of the phrase, "War On xxx" is in order, also.
Wright is just plain ugly. Why anyone besides a teenager with out of control testosterone would find her attractive (sexually or otherwise) is a mystery to me. The profile picture with the smirk on her face clearly shows she needs cases of the latest acne medication.
As my Dad used to say, 'She'd make a freight train take a dirt road.....'.
Legalize the oldest profession,make em get tested for STDs,AND QUIT WASTIN our TAXPAYERS MONEY on BS.