Ex-employee of management company claims: 'It was ploy to boost popularity.'
Tears were shed, accusations made and lawsuits threatened. And just when the smile came back on Hong Kong pop star Gillian Chung's face, comes another shock.
It seems her ordeal of being photographed eight months ago while changing was a set-up.
A former senior management personnel from her management company, Emperor Entertainment Group, has claimed that the entire fiasco was staged to create publicity for Gillian, who is one half of Hong Kong's Cantopop duo Twins. The person was identified only as Mr. L by the Hong Kong media.
Last August, Hong Kong gossip magazine Easy Finder weekly splashed a photo of Gillian changing on its cover, with the headline 'AhGill undoes bra in rear window'.
The pictures were allegedly shot by paparazzi with a pinhole camera during a Twins concert in Genting Highlands, Malaysia.
The incident sparked a furor in the entertainment industry where celebrities rallied against paparazzi for their unethical conduct. At that time, Hong Kong Chief Executive Donald Tsang and action star Jackie Chan were among those who rallied around Gillian. Malaysia even ordered Easy Finder to be taken off the shelves.
Emperor condemned the 'immoral' photos and said it would take legal action against Easy Finder, which is published by Next Media.
The company, owned by businessman Jimmy Lai, also publishes Next magazine and Apple Daily.
Popularity Woes
Mr. L claimed that since Gillian's debut five years ago, her popularity, or lack thereof as compared to her partner Charlene Choi, has always worried the management, reported Hong Kong's Oriental Daily.
'Last year, the company wanted them to go solo. But as Gillian was unable to hold the fort on her own, it was decided that Charlene would stay with her for another year,' claimed Mr. L.
Apparently, Gillian was a victim of the manipulation and was not privy to the deal.
'She is too timid. There's no way of informing her before it was carried out. But had it been Charlene, I believe she would cooperate,' he added.
The plan was simple.
Staff from Emperor allegedly hid a pinhole camera inside the changing room at the Genting Highlands concert.
Security was tight and only staff from the company could gain access easily.
The company then allegedly bribed Easy Finder with HK$200,000 ($39,000) to print the pictures. Mr. L said the execution was almost flawless, except for one glaring detail. After the blow-up, Emperor lashed out at the magazine and media, and vowed to take action.
The only recourse Gillian had was the fact that the Hong Kong court ruled that the photos were 'indecent'. The magazine was subsequently required to be wrapped and made to display an 'Over-18 only' warning. When contacted by Malaysia's China Press, Twins' manager Ada Wong's retort came fast and furious.
'No such thing!' she exclaimed.
She questioned the veracity of the report.
'This is ridiculous and there's no such thing, so there's no need for any response,' she said. She also denied that the duo would split up.
'It's all false, so I think you don't have to bother yourself with such news,' she said.
When asked about the status of the police investigations, she said that there was no need for them to go to Malaysia to assist in investigations at the moment.
The Malaysian police is investigating Mr. L's claims.
A police spokesman said that if it is the truth, he should have contacted the police rather than the media. He added that if the police get more evidence supporting the claim, they would not rule out the possibility of sending officers to Hong Kong to investigate. They may also work with Interpol.
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Here's the related article from Eastday (for those who wants to read the Chinese version):
“阿娇被偷拍事件”再起波澜。近日有媒体称“偷拍”不过是英皇与《壹本便利》的一次联合“炒作”，但昨天香港方面传来最新消息，马来西亚警方声称对该案已取得 “重大进展”，三名专案组成员将在五月中旬抵达香港，会晤受害者阿娇及包括阿Sa在内的八名证人。据悉，有关嫌疑人已承认“偷拍”。警方又表示，如果真是英皇自导自演，会控告英皇“报假案”。
警方说法——
1、嫌疑人已承认偷拍
TWINS成员阿娇（钟欣桐）去年8月在马来西亚云顶举行演唱会时，在后台被人拍下换衣照，八卦杂志《壹本便利》刊登后引起轩然大波。阿娇所属的英皇公司“愤而报警”，此案令马来西亚警方高层震怒，警方立即组成八人专案小组全程跟进调查工作，翻查案发地点云星剧场的所有闭路电视录影带，之后又通过国际刑警与香港警方沟通，希望到香港取证。至上周，香港警方告知，可以安排马国警员在五月中旬到港搜集证据。
专案组主要负责人是马来西亚彭亨州刑事调查主任努林，他前天向香港媒体证实专案组有三名马来西亚资深警务人员来到香港，拟会晤钟欣桐及另外八名证人，包括蔡卓妍（阿Sa）及两名当时在场的香港工作人员。据悉，专案组已取得重大进展。
马来西亚国内安全部副部长胡亚桥也公开称马来西亚不会放弃调查：“其实他们都承认了偷拍，只不过我们暂时缺乏人证、物证来进行检控。”另外，由于阿娇也已在香港报案，所以负责调查的港岛总区重案组会一直跟进案件，并安排一个秘密地点让马来西亚专案组成员会见有关证人。
2、若属“自导”将追诉
日前有内地媒体称，一位英皇“离职高层L先生”接受记者采访时，爆出“阿骄偷拍事件”竟然是英皇公司为了提高即将单飞的阿娇的人气，而与《壹本便利》进行一次联合炒作。“炒作”说一出，立即引起巨大反响。不过马来西亚警方高调介入的消息让不少网友质疑“炒作”说的真实程度：“英皇总不会愚蠢到戏弄警方吧？”
马来西亚警方对此声称，如果证实是英皇公司“自导自演”，会以“报假案”来追踪调查，并会以妨碍公务罪名提控涉案者，并称有关知情者可通过或书信方式提供情报。相关负责人还表示不希望知情者通过媒体来渲染此事，而使调查工作受到影响。
（英皇回应）
“不知L先生从何而来”
阿娇所在的英皇公司艺人管理部总监霍汶希坚决否认了炒作一说。她表示公司从来不回应“无聊的新闻”，且正对该事件进行调查，不排除以法律手段捍卫本公司的权益。她一再强调，首先公司最近没有高层离职，不知道这个L先生从何而来；其次也不打算让TWINS解散，“她们只是分开接拍影视剧，现在TWINS成绩很好，很受欢迎，没有必要分开她们。”
霍汶希还表示，公司会积极配合马来西亚和香港警方的调查，因为涉及警方办案，所以具体细节不方便多透露，但是希望事件可以尽快获得解决，将违法者绳之于法。她说阿娇现在正在无锡和谢霆锋拍摄电视剧《浣花洗剑录》，“没有看无聊的新闻，所以心情不受影响”。
链接
“阿娇偷拍事件”反响巨大
“阿娇偷拍事件”在香港引起了巨大反响，众多圈内、圈外人士都对阿娇表示了同情，以及对偷拍行为表示愤慨。
香港演艺人协会和香港无线电视台联合举行大型游行声讨会，过百位演艺界、教育界、妇女界等团体代表参加，表达对偷拍行为的抵制决心。声讨会上阿娇谈及个人感受以及精神如何受到困扰，成龙、张学友、刘德华等均参加活动声援阿娇。抗议活动不久升级为游行。去年8月30日，成龙、吴君如、梁家辉、阿 Sa等20多位艺人身穿印有“姑息养奸，痛心疾首”字样的黑色上衣，游行到香港特区政府总部并提交请愿信，强烈谴责《壹本便利》。
香港特别行政区长官曾荫权也公开谴责偷拍艺人隐私行为，强调无论如何侵犯别人隐私都是不能被接受的，并希望有关部门在保障新闻自由的同时，也能保护艺人隐私权。
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