Choreographer Shane Sparks Arrested for Sex Crimes
SYTYCD Hip-Hop Instructor Charged With 8 Counts of Child Molestation
Ok So You Think You Can Dance, you might want to screen your choreographers a little more closely. In the last four months two of your choreographers have been arrested for sex crimes. Come on, guys!
Back in August, Alex Da Silva, a salsa/mambo/Argentinian tango choreographer for the dance show was arrested for allegedly raping four of his dance students. Now, hip hop choreographer Shane Sparks has been picked up for eight counts of child molestation. Ouch.
The case against Sparks involves only one person, and goes back to incidences that occurred between 1994 and 1997. At the time the reported acts took place, Sparks was 25, and the victim was 14. The charges against the choreographer consist of six counts of lewd acts on a child 14 or younger, and two counts of oral copulation of a person under 16.
Not good, Mr. Sparks. Not good at all.
Sparks gained recognition in 2004 for his work co-choreographing the movie You Got Served, and his reputation in the dance world has grown since he joined the choreographers on So You Think You Can Dance. One of his routines on the show was nominated for an Emmy in Outstanding Choreography, and led to him being asked to judge MTV’s America’s Best Dance Crew.
If Sparks faces conviction for the charges against him, he’ll be facing nationwide recognition of a different sort: The choreographer would be required to have his DNA and fingerprints registered in the national database of sex offenders. That’s definitely not going to be a career boost.
Source: E! Online
