Beijing's Chaoyang District People's Procuratorate approved the arrest of star singer Li Daimo on Wednesday for allowing other people to use drugs at his temporary home.

The police detained Li and five other people on March 18 at his temporary home in Sanlitun, Chaoyang District.

Li rose to fame on the popular television talent show, The Voice of China. He has more than 830,000 followers on Sina Weibo, the Chinese equivalent of Twitter.

The singer has allowed people to take drugs at his temporary home several times since March, procurator Wang Lin said in a news conference on Wednesday.

Li was fully aware that his guests were taking drugs and violated China's Criminal Law, Wang said. If convicted, Li faces up to three years in prison and a fine.

Beijing's entertainment venues, mainly located in Chaoyang district, are popular areas for drug abuse.

Yu Meng, an official from the procuratorate's investigation and supervision department, said the high pressure people face nowadays is one reason behind the drug abuse.

Many criminals are taking advantage of people's spiritual emptiness and weak willpower to lure them into buying drugs, Yu said.

"They claim that the drugs can relieve pressure."

houliqiang@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily USA 04/17/2014 page5)