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11/22/2024 04:19:51 am

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Jackie Chan's Son Gets 6 Months Jail Term for Drug Offense

Jaycee Chan

(Photo : Weibo: Beijing People's Court) Jaycee Chan at the Dongcheng District People’s Court, Beijing, Jan. 9, 2015

A Beijing people's court on Friday sentenced Jackie Chan's son Jaycee to six months imprisonment and a fine of 2,000 yuan or $322 in connection with drug charges slapped against him last month.

Prosecutors had recommended the light sentence on account of Chan's cooperative attitude when he was arrested and his subsequent voluntary confession to police.

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The younger Chan was detained in August after Chinese authorities caught him in possession of 100 grams of Marijuana in his home in Beijing.

The drug charges, which the Dongcheng District People's Court enumerated before Chan last month, included providing a venue for other people to use drugs.

Chan, Chinese entertainer Alice Li, and Taiwanese actor Kai Ko all tested positive for marijuana when they were nabbed last year, with the latter tearfully admitting to drug use before television viewers.

The 32-year old Chan pleaded guilty to letting Ko and and Li use drugs in his Beijing home once in 2012, and on three other occasions on July 10, Aug 13 and Aug 14, 2014.

Court testimony revealed that a personal assistant of Chan named Sun had been buying and providing the actor with marijuana since 2008.

On Friday, the scene at the eastern court was different than the trials on other crimes in that journalists were allowed to set up camera equipment to capture the defendant's arrival, after which they were led into a conference room and provided drinks and frequent updates by court staff.

Live updates on the proceedings were also posted by the court on its Weibo account.

"I broke the law and I should be punished. When I'm back in the community, I won't repeat my offence and disappoint my family and friends again," Chan said in his testimony.

His famous parents, Kung Fu star Jackie Chan and former actress Lin Feng-jiao, did not attend the trial, and Jackie had earlier stressed that he would not use his fame and influence to sway the courts to favor his son.

Jackie, however, had been emotional about his son's drug case, once intimating online that he had failed to be a good father and deserved the blame for what happened to Jaycee.

The elder Chan is a member of China's national political advisory body and was appointed anti-drug ambassador in 2009.

"As a public figure, I am ashamed. As a father I feel terrible," Chan posted on Weibo in August.

More than 10 other local celebrities have been detained on drug-related cases as Beijing stepped up its drive to curb immoral activities last year. 

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