Jaycee Chan: Jackie Chan’s son arrested in Beijing on drug-related charges

Jaycee Chan, the 31-year-old son of martial arts star Jackie Chan, has been arrested on drug-related charges, Chinese state media say.

Actor Jaycee Chan and Taiwanese movie star Kai Ko, 23, were detained last Thursday, Beijing police said in a statement on their official microblog.

Police said both men tested positive for marijuana, with more than 100 grams of the drug found at Jaycee Chan’s home.

Their arrest comes amid an ongoing crackdown on drugs which has already netted several celebrity figures.

Gao Hu, 40, who appeared in the 2011 Zhang Yimou film The Flowers of War, was detained earlier this month for possession of marijuana and methamphetamines, state media said.

In June, Chinese President Xi Jinping called for “forceful measures” to tackle illegal drug use.

A government anti-drug advisor told the Associated Press news agency that Chinese celebrities were being targeted because of the “huge influence” their behavior had on “their large numbers of fans”.

Beijing Municipal Anti-Drug Office deputy director Jin Zhihai however, said that police were not specifically targeting celebrities.

“If there is an increased crackdown on drugs, the number of celebrity offenders will also rise,” he told the Beijing Times on August 14.

Last week, 42 artist management agencies in Beijing signed an agreement with police pledging not to recruit celebrities with reported drug use problems.

Jaycee Chan, whose father Jackie was named an official “Narcotics Control Ambassador” by Chinese police in 2009, had been put under “criminal detention” for the suspected crime of “providing a shelter for others to abuse drugs”, Beijing police said.

If convicted, Jaycee Chan faces a maximum prison term of three years.

Kai Ko, a Taiwanese actor and singer, won the best new actor award in 2011 at the Golden Horse film awards – known as the Oscars of the Chinese-language film industry. He also won a Chinese Film Media award for his role in the movie You Are the Apple of My Eye.

Accused of consuming drugs, Kai Ko had received a two-week detention term, his management company Star Ritz Productions said.

“I feel very regretful, very sorry to all the people who support me. I’ve been a very bad example, I’ve made a very big mistake,” Kai Ko said in an interview broadcast on Chinese state television on August 19.

Beijing police also said two other people, a 36-year-old assistant and a 33-year-old suspected dealer, were detained in the incident.

Jaycee Chan’s management company M’Stones International apologized on his behaf for the “social impact” caused and said they would “supervise his rehabilitation and help him return to the right path”.

Jackie Chan’s publicist told the Associated Press that he had travelled to Beijing to deal with his son’s arrest.