HK star's nude photos lead to arrests in China

The two were sentenced to five days detention for spreadingat least ten photos of singer and actor Edison Chen in bed withfemale celebrities, a scandal that has touched off a mediafrenzy in Hong Kong and feverish downloading of the photos.

The two men were arrested in the central province of Hunanafter an online post showing the nude photos attracted morethan 100,000 hits, Xinhua news agency said.

Eleven others across the country have already been detainedfor producing or selling the photos or posting them on theInternet, Xinhua said.

Some 1,300 private shots of the celebrities were stolen bythe staff of a computer repair shop from a faulty laptopbelieved to belong to Chen, Hong Kong police have said.

Last week, Chen said he would quit the Hong Kongentertainment industry to "heal himself".

The Canada-born Chen, a hip hop artist and Asian film star,has admitted that most of the pictures circulating on theInternet had been taken by him and said that he never intendedto show them to anyone.

Hong Kong police have made at least 10 arrests inconnection with the scandal.

China prohibits the production or distribution of"pornographic products even without the purpose of makingprofit" and offenders can face detention of up to 15 days,Xinhua said.

(Reporting by Simon Rabinovitch)