Chinese-Canadian Rapper Kris Wu Denies Sexual Abuse Claims

Chinese-Canadian rapper Kris Wu has been accused of rape and luring underage girls into engaging in sexual activities with him. The former K-pop member is facing massive backlash from fans and sponsors severing contracts even as he denied all accusations against him.

According to the BBC, the allegations came from a 19-year-old woman identified as Du Meizhu, who claimed to be one of his victims. In recent weeks, Du took to social media posting allegations that Wu would promise teenage girls cushy opportunities in the entertainment industry while luring them to have sex with him. However, none of his promises ever materialized.

In an interview with NetEase last Sunday, Du claimed she knew of eight girls who were victimized by Wu. She had met Wu when she was 17 , and was invited to his home with other young girls on the pretense of an audition as Wu’s managers were also present. She claimed to have been pressured to stay in the rapper's home as Wu’s team kept her from leaving while indulging her with alcoholic drinks.

Du said she woke up in Wu’s bed and said the rapper did not use a condom during her alleged rape. After the incident, she was led to believe that she and Wu were in a relationship as he would exchange flirtatious text messages with her and even told her she would soon meet his mother. The text messages waned and Wu stopped communicating with her altogether.

A sum of 500,000 yuan ($77,130) has been supposedly paid as hush money to Du by the rapper's management team. Global Times reported Du would return the money as she had decided to spill the beans on Wu. Reports indicated she was ready to face legal action, quoting Du merely wanted to be Wu's “the last victim”.

Du had also called for the rapper to personally apologize to his victims within 24 hours and quit the music industry.

Wu and his team have since denied the accusations on Weibo saying the rapper has filed a defamation suit against Du. “I only met Miss Du once at a friend’s gathering, I didn’t ply her with alcohol … I have never ‘coerced women into sex’ or engaged in ‘date rape,” he wrote. "If I've done any of the things (alleged), I will go to jail myself," Wu added.

Big brands such as Lancome and Kiehls who have contracts tied to the rapper have removed all their social media content that features Wu. Louis Vuitton issued a statement on Weibo saying it has suspended its relationship with Wu until judicial investigations have been concluded. Meanwhile, Bulgari and Porsche also reportedly cut ties with Wu but have to yet to formally give their statement regarding the status of their existing contractswith the rap star.