Support for Accused Dance Teacher

Student told friend she had sex with dance school owner.

The co-owner of a Farmington dance studio has been arrested, accused of sexually assaulting a student.

Police started investigating Jeffrey David Sepa, 43, of Bristol, in February when one of his students told her friends she had a sexual relationship with him, Farmington police said.

Stunned parents who bring their children to Danscapes, the popular dance at 24 Spring Lane, studio are stunned.  Sepa owns the studio with his wife.

"It's not true, it's gotta be a fabrication," said Pamela Urisko, whose daughter has attended the studio for years. "People are crying.  They're in disbelief about this. It can't be true."

The girl had been one of Sepa's students for about 11 years, police said, and the alleged assaults happened at the studio.

Sepa was charged under a criminal statute that forbids coaches in an athletic activity, or anyone who provides ongoing instruction, to have sex with someone they are instructing if the student is under 18. The charges are two counts of sexual assault in the second degree.

"I'm not going to pull my daughter out and say, 'You're not going to Danscapes,' because that's not fair.  I'm not going to judge him," Urisko said.

Urisko said Sepa has so much on the line. 

"I find it hard to believe that he would have done anything to jeopardize his home life, his career, his business, everything," Urisko said.

He turned himself in on Wednesday after learning there was a warrant for his arrest. He posted a $50,000 bond and will appear in Hartford Superior Court on March 8.

No one answered the door at the studio or the Sepa's home in Bristol.

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