Chinese-Canadian pop-star Kris Wu detained in Beijing on suspicion of rape

Chinese-Canadian pop star Kris Wu has been detained by Beijing police on July 31, 2021, on suspicion of rape. The District police took to the Chinese social media site Weibo to make the announcement. The Canadian singer is accused of luring young women into sexual relationships. 

Pop-star Kris Wu detained!

The Beijing Chaoyang district police took to their official Weibo handle and made the announcement. The post translates, "In response to internet reports, ‘Wu X-fan has repeatedly tricked young women into having sex’ and other related issues, Wu X-fan (male, 30, Canadian) has been detained in accordance with the law after police investigations for the suspected crime of rape."

Kris Wu is one of China's most high-profile celebrities. The police's post within just 25 minutes, garnered more than 3.33 million likes. The report suggests '#Wu Yifan has been detained' also started trending on China's Weibo platform. Wu's case has ignited the Chinese social media handles for the past several weeks now. 

Earlier, a 19-year-old college student named Du Meizhu has accused Wu of purposely getting her drunk at a party and that he raped her. Meizhu took to her social media handle to post the allegations where she added that the rapper has done the same to at least seven other young women, who were often found via casting calls or selected from his fan clubs. 

However, the Canadian singer has denied the allegations on his verified Weibo handle. His note translates, "I only met this woman once on Dec. 5, 2020, while with a group of friends… I declare I have never done anything like ‘selecting concubines,’ coercing women into sex, drugging people to rape them, or engaging with underage girls! If there really had been this behaviour, I would certainly willingly go to jail." 

Several minutes after the police statement, China's Central Political and Legal Affairs Commission (the authority that takes care of the country's legal enforcement apparatus, including the police) released a statement of its own on their official Weibo handle. The statement says that the procedures for such cases must "base themselves on facts and take the law as the criterion". The singer and actor's detention comes even after the Beijing police ruled that Meizhu and her friend had accused him in order "to enhance their own popularity online". The District police also ruled that conflicting claims about an alleged settlement between the rapper and Meizhu camps were the result of a third-party man defrauding both. 

(With AP Inputs)

IMAGE: KRIS WU TWITTER