Why has Kris Wu been detained in China

CHINESE Canadian pop star Kris Wu has been detained in China following allegations against him.

Chinese police are still pursuing an active investigation into the claims.

Kris Wu was detained in China on July 31, 2021 according to Beijing policeCredit: Getty Why has Kris Wu been detained in China?

Kris Wu was detained in China on July 31, 2021, according to Beijing police.

Police said in a statement that the detainment was due to suspicion of rape after allegedly "repeatedly seducing young women into having sex."

The claims emerged after a woman using the handle Du Meizhu posted on Weibo, a Chinese social media platform, alleging that she was sexually assaulted while attending the Communication University of China in Beijing at age 17.

She was later interviewed by major news portal NetEase, bringing more attention to the claims.

According to the interview, she thought she was meeting Wu for a career opportunity.

Instead, his staff who was present allegedly forced her to drink.

As someone who did not go to bars, she said her tolerance was low and she was drunk after two drinks.

The next day, she claims she woke up in Wu's bed. That morning, he was kind to her and promised to take care of her, she said.

The teenager said that was the beginning of what she had thought was their relationship. This was the case until March, when he stopped returning her messages.

At first, she said she felt sorry for herself. But after she learned that there were other women who claimed they had been treated similarly, she said she felt there were others who were worse-off.

"I don't believe this is just my own personal matter. You can even say that this is a problem with the atmosphere in China's entertainment circle," she said in the NetEase interview.

Many Weibo users came to her defense and thanked her for speaking out.

"I have to say thank you to Du Meizhu," one Weibo user commented. "I'm really thankful to her for speaking out for women!"

What claims were previously made against Wu?

Wu, 30, had earlier been accused by a teenager of having sex with her while she was drunk.

Wu denied the accusation.

The teenager claimed seven other women had contacted her to say Wu had seduced them with promises of jobs or other opportunities.

She said some of those were under 18 but didn’t say if they were under China’s age of consent which is 14.

At least 24 women have since come forward alleging inappropriate behavior, according to the BBC.

What has Kris Wu said about the allegations?

Wu denied Du Meizhu's allegations on his personal Weibo account when they gained traction.

His company announced that they were pursuing legal action against the accuser, calling the claims "malicious rumors."

Wu said that he had met the young woman on December 5, 2020, but "I didn't force her to drink, and there was not this sort of details she describes.

"I didn't expect my silence to encourage these rumors, and I couldn't stand it!" Wu previously wrote. "There were a lot of people there that day who can bear witness."

"There was no 'groupie sex'! There was no 'underage'!' he wrote on his social media account after the allegations were made.

"If there were this kind of thing, please everyone relax, I would put myself in jail!"

The 30-year-old, whose Chinese name is Wu Yifan, was born in Southern China but is a Canadian citizen.

He rose to fame as part of the Korean-Chinese pop group EXO, but left the band in 2014 to pursue a solo career.

He went on to star in many movies and work with top fashion brands including Burberry.

What brands have distanced themselves from Wu?

After the accuser's interview, at least 10 brands have begun distancing themselves from Wu.

Wu served as an ambassador for Louis Vuitton in 2018, causing the fashion house to make a statement regarding their ties with the star.

"Louis Vuitton takes the recent accusations concerning Mr. Kris Wu very seriously and as such suspends its collaboration with the artist until the investigation is concluded," it said in an emailed statement in July.

Bulgari, Porsche China, and cosmetics brand Kans have also come out about severing their ties with the singer amid the investigation.

Chinese police arrest Canadian singer Kris Wu

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