One of America's most successful Irish dance teachers has been convicted of lewd conduct with a 15-year-old boy.
Sean Gavan (41) was convicted on Monday after two days of deliberation by a California jury. He faces up to a year in prison when he is sentenced on March 7th.
Gavan, originally from Scotland, ran Glasgow's largest Irish dance school before moving to California, where he held classes in eight cities. He had sent dozens of his students to international competitions and several world Irish dancing titles.
About 30 supporters sat behind Gavan during the week-long trial, including parents who had helped to post $50,000 bail for him.
The jury found him guilty of inappropriately touching the boy, a former student, who was staying at Gavan's home in Corona, California, in December 2000. Prosecutors relied on a telephone conversation between Gavan and the boy, known in court as "John", which was secretly recorded by the police.
Deputy District Attorney Kelly Hansen told a jury in Corona that Gavan did not deny the allegations put to him by the boy.
She said "John" was an ideal target because he was ostracized by his peers, confused about his sexuality and eager to please his dance teacher.
In his testimony, Gavan said the boy would often ring him late at night. "He complained no one liked him, and he talked about threatening to commit suicide," Gavan said. He agreed that he had apologised to the boy, but denied molesting him.