'We were not aware of drink driving charge': Mediacorp cuts ties with Shane Pow

While its artistes have run afoul of the law before, Mediacorp has stuck by them. But now, it seems its patience has run out.

At 1pm today (Apr 26), local broadcaster Mediacorp — which owns the talent management agency The Celebrity Agency — released a statement announcing it has cut ties with its talent, actor Shane Pow.

The 29-year-old was charged in court last Thursday on one count of drink driving. He was allegedly caught on Sep 17 last year at around 11.20pm driving a motorvan along Java Road with 49 microgrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath, exceeding the limit of 35 microgrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath.

Shane was also convicted earlier on July 30, 2014, for an offence of drink driving. If he is convicted this time, he faces a driving ban of at least five years, a jail term of up to two years, and a fine between $5,000 and $20,000. He will return to court on June 3.

In its release, Mediacorp said it was not aware of Shane's drink driving charge prior to the media reports.

It added: "We do not condone any behaviour that runs afoul of the law. We constantly remind our artistes that their fans and members of the public look to them as role models, and they are expected to behave as such.

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"Shane did not inform the artiste management team about this matter that took place in September 2020. He was also recently found to have breached Covid-19 safe management measures in an incident that took place in October 2020. He was fined for this offence and internal disciplinary action was also taken.

"Taking into account all the above issues, Mediacorp has decided to part ways with Shane. Due to ongoing contractual commitments, Shane is required to complete outstanding work until May 4, 2021."

Two of Shane's upcoming dramas — Soul Old Yet So Young and The Heartland Hero — will proceed to air in June and July as scheduled "in consideration for the efforts of the entire cast and crew, and the investments that have been put into these two productions".

As of writing, Shane hasn't updated his Instagram account page, which still lists him as a Mediacorp artiste managed by The Celebrity Agency.

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His last post was made six days ago thanking his fans for their support in Star Awards 2021, but some netizens have left comments berating him since his recent court case was reported.

One wrote: "Can you please be considerate for the safety of others? Just because of your selfish drink drive action [sic] can cause someone to lose their family member or even multiple tragic road accidents. Second time caught drink driving again. Hope the law can be strict to you so you will learn a lesson."

Another netizen seemed to have predicted his relationship with Mediacorp: "Likely he just needs to pray that he is able to even have opportunities to be cast in the future. Otherwise, he should just re-think how to earn a living."

kwokkarpeng@asiaone.com