A Chinese celebrity sex scandal came to a head on Thursday, with Vancouver-born actor and singer Edison Chen apologizing for widely-circulated photos showing him and several women apparently engaged in sex acts.

Chen held a press conference in Hong Kong to publicly address for the first time the ongoing controversy, which has shocked the Chinese-speaking world for weeks.

Vancouver-born actor and singer Edison Chen admitted he took the racy photos and apologized for the controversy during a news conference in Hong Kong Thursday.
(Kin Cheung/Associated Press)

The scandal began when the 27-year-old performer sent his laptop computer to a shop for repair. The computer contained approximately 1,300 photos of Chen and a bevy of female Chinese celebrities either posed suggestively or engaged in sex acts, according to police.

Suspects stole and subsequently published the images on the internet, where they have been widely circulated.

"These photos were very private … and were never intended to be shown to anyone," Chen said Thursday.

"I would like to apologize to all the ladies and to all their families for any harm or hurt they have been feeling. I'm sorry," he said.

He didn't identify the women who, according to local media, include some of Hong Kong's top singers and actresses.

Chen, who also apologized to his family and to the general public, added that he had failed as a role model.

"I know young people in Hong Kong look up to many figures in our society and, in this regard, I have failed as a role model."

'I have decided to step away from the Hong Kong entertainment industry ... to give myself an opportunity to heal myself and to search my soul.'— Edison Chen, actor and singer

Chen, perhaps best known for his supporting role in the acclaimed crime thriller Infernal Affairs and in the horror film The Grudge 2, also said he has decided to break from the Hong Kong industry "indefinitely."

"I will wholeheartedly fulfill all commitments I have to date but after that I have decided to step away from the Hong Kong entertainment industry," he said.

"I have decided to do this to give myself an opportunity to heal myself and to search my soul. I will dedicate my time to charity and community work within the next few months."

Hong Kong police have made several arrests amid their ongoing investigation into the case, which has also spread to mainland China and Taiwan.

Local officers in the southern Chinese city of Shenzen and in Taipei have arrested suspects for allegedly distributing the photos. Authorities have also called on Chinese internet service providers to filter or delete the images should they come across them.

As a film and music industry hub, Hong Kong has a high-profile culture of celebrity akin to a Chinese version of Hollywood, London or Mumbai.

However, unlike the Western world, media coverage of local stars is generally more prim, with reportage that includes sex or nudity often harshly criticized by the industry.

In 2006, for example, an illicitly photographed image of Canto-pop singer Gillian Chung (reportedly one of the women in Chen's photos) changing clothes backstage during a concert sparked a major backlash against the outlets that published it.

With files from the Associated Press