Hong Kong - The pop star at the centre of a celebrity sex photos scandal in Hong Kong has refused to return from the United States to testify against a suspect in the case, a news report said Wednesday. Edison Chen, 27, fled Hong Kong after pictures of him romping with a string of young women stars were downloaded from his laptop when he took it in for repairs and distributed on the internet in January.
Millions of internet users viewed the images, and Chen was forced to announce his early retirement from show business and apologize to the women involved including Twins singer Gillian Chung.
Computer technician Sze Ho-chun, 23, was due to go on trial Monday on a charge of dishonest use of a computer, but the case has stalled because Chen has refused to return to Hong Kong to testify, the South China Morning Post reported.
At a hearing Tuesday, the case was adjourned until November as lawyers discuss whether the case can proceed without Chen being present to testify, the newspaper said.
Another man arrested for distributing 83 of the photographs over the internet was given a two-month suspended jail sentence at a hearing in July.
Chen left Hong Kong for the US when the scandal broke and has returned briefly only once when he made his public apology and announced his retirement.
