Former 183 Club Member Jacky Chu Arrested For Drug-Related Offences For The Third Time

​Taiwanese actor and former member of the now-defunct noughties boyband 183 Club Jacky Chu has always been known more for being a man about town. After all, he was dropped from 183 Club in 2007 for partying too much, barely two years after he first joined the group. 

Since then, he has been apprehended for marijuana-related offences three times, with his most recent arrest on Monday (Apr 13).

According to Taiwanese media, Jacky was hauled to the police station when police officers at a routine roadblock found an e-cigarette containing marijuana in the front seat of his car. 

Jacky admitted that he had smoked the e-cigarette, which belonged to a friend, in a nightclub earlier. Said friend then proceeded to gift the e-cigarette to Jacky after the latter commented that he liked it. However, Jacky denied knowing that the e-cigarette contained marijuana. 

As the 40-year-old had violated Taiwan’s Narcotics Hazard Prevention Act, the case was forwarded to the local prosecutor's office. A sample of Jacky’s hair will also be tested for marijuana traces.

Jacky was subsequently granted a NT$50,0000 (S$2360) bail. However, he was unable to pay the amount himself, and had to ask his older brother to post bail on his behalf.

​Upon his release, Jacky was mobbed by reporters outside the police station, but he declined to give a comment. His mother, however, gave an interview to reporters, where she reportedly said that she “would not care about him anymore”. 

Jacky was first charged for consuming marijuana in 2007, and sentenced to 47 days of rehab. In 2013, he was at a friend's house party when the neighbours called the cops on them as they were making too much noise. When the authorities arrived at the venue, Jacky was found with a bag of marijuana on him. A subsequent urine test proved that the actor did not consume the drug, and he was given a suspended sentence instead.

In 2014, Jacky changed his Chinese name to Zhang You Tian and attempted to break into China’s entertainment industry, but the response was sadly lukewarm.