UPDATE: Sheriff reveals more on alleged child sex abuse at M

on the alleged child sex abuse case at mitchell’s martial arts in salisbury 47 abc’s julian sadur sat down with wicomico county sheriff mike lewis today and now joins us live outside of mitchell’s martial arts with the new details, julian. dave – what we’ve learned is that there are more than just the three original victims listed in the court documents – sheriff lewis says they know there are several other victims that zack bennett had relations with during the 10 years he worked here. lewis also told me that in addition to zack bennett and leah wright — that the sheriff’s office is looking into the possibility that another suspect may have been involved. 034938 i don’t think there’s anyway you can rationalize this track it’s case that even wicomico county sheriff mike lewis is having trouble with – because of just how many underage girls 26 year old zack bennett allegedly had sexual relations with and the frequency that it happened. lewis telling us that along with the three victims ages 13 to 15 at the time – originally listed in these court documents – the sheriff’s office quote “knows there were several other victims. ” these things unfortunately occur and when they occur it shocks our conscious, it shocks everyone. everybody’s victimized by this individual 034823 not just those that he physically victimized but those who looked up to him as a mentor, as an instructor, it affects us all track in total bennett faces 27 child sex abuse charges – for allegedly doing things like sending naked pictures of himself to victims – having victims perform oral sex on him – and even trying to have sex with at least one victim. court documents show bennett did not act alone – 21 year old leah wright allegedly helped – even acting as a lookout for bennett on one occasion. but wednesday we learned – there may be a third suspect involved. ten years bennett was employed at the martial arts studio – lewis says they have reason to believe bennett was sexually abusing minors that whole entire time. i think there’s a loss of trust within our community now in what has occurred and where it occurred 0360 there’s no doubt theres a fractured trust there lewis tells me even though it’s a tough conversation to have – parents need to be having discussions with their children about sexual harassment – given the recent events. he also urges anyone who may have been affected by bennett – to come forward either to the sheriff’s department or the child advocacy center. now as for the investigation – lewis tells me is still very active and will probably take several weeks to wrap up. so what that tells me – we shouldnt be surprised if more charges come out. reporting live in salisbury – julian sadur – 47 abc thank you julian. now last friday, m.j. caldwell -corporate attorney for mitchell’s martial arts released the following statement quote “we are aware of the incident -we take the safety and security of our staff and guests very seriously -we intend to uphold and enforce the highest standards of conduct as we move forward with our business” — end quote. zack bennett is currently being held at the wicomico county detention center without bail. meanwhile leah wright was released yesterday on 150 thousand dollars bond. bennett’s attorney – steve cox – has said his office won’t comment on this story. to see more of our coverage of the alleged child sex abuse case at mitchell’s martial arts – head to our website 47 abc dot com. . a delmar man — is on trial for murder and child