Taiwanese actor and pop idol Kai Ko (柯震東) has been arrested on drug charges in Beijing, the Beijing Times newspaper reported yesterday.
The 23-year-old Ko, who shot to fame in the 2011 Taiwanese blockbuster You Are the Apple of My Eye (那些年，我們一起追的女孩) and won the Golden Horse award for Best New Actor that year for the role, is being investigated by Chinese police, the newspaper reported.
The actor has been absent from social media for several days, fueling speculation in media outlets on both sides of the Taiwan Strait. He has not updated his Facebook, Instagram or Weibo (微博) since Tuesday last week.
Photo: CNA
Ko’s agency confirmed the news report in a statement released yesterday evening, saying it received a call from Chinese police authorities at 6:30pm yesterday about the matter. The agency said it was informed in the call that Ko would be detained by police for 14 days, in line with administrative procedures for “violating Chinese law regulating public security.”
In the statement, the agency expressed regret and apologized for letting Ko’s fans down.
Taiwanese actress Michelle Chen (陳妍希), Ko’s co-star in You Are the Apple of My Eye, as well as Taiwanese author and director Giddens Ko (柯景騰), who directed the movie, expressed shock yesterday upon learning the news.
“All I want to do now is throw a punch at Kai Ko” for letting down people who love him, said Giddens Ko, also known as Jiu Ba Dao (九把刀). “Sorry, I am very, very, very sad.”
The news is seen as ironic because Kai Ko, on the invitation of the Ministry of Justice, had in 2011 starred in an anti-drug promotional video.
Jaycee Chan (房祖名), son of martial arts superstar Jackie Chan (成龍) and a close friend of Kai Ko’s, was with him at the time and was also arrested on drug-related charges.
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