Late Night Drug Raid at Haidian's Midi Music School Nets 16 Student Arrests

Sixteen students from Haidian's Midi School of Music were arrested in a late-night drug raid that occurred Wednesday night, according to Chinese news sources.

Over 300 students were tested in the planned raid on the school, Beijing's only registered school for modern music and known for its annual mega-concert, the Midi Music Festival, which has expanded from its Beijing base to being held in multiple cities across the country.

The arrests were confirmed yesterday by Haidian district's police department, although specific details were omitted.

Headmaster Zhang Fan told media that drug use – and even smoking – is not tolerated in the school or dormitories. He characterized the students' drug use not as a chronic habit but likely the result of curiosity.

"It's horrible that this marijuana event [sic] has happened, but we should give the children an opportunity to correct their mistake," Zhang was quoted as saying. "We hope that they can return to school as soon as possible to continue their studies, because music is the best medicine."

School officials say the police have determined that the students are first offenders and have admitted their mistake, they will likely be treated with leniency and be allowed to return to school "within a few days," China.org.cn reported.

The incident is reminiscent of several drug raids that have happened over the past 18 months. Beijing police have been targeting both the entertainment and the education sectors over this period in an effort to weed out drug use.

The most high-profile arrest in the entertainment sector of recent memory was Jaycee Chan back in August of last year, who spent six months in a Beijing prison for smoking marijuana and sheltering his buddy and fellow weed enthusiast Kai Ko in his Dongzhimen residence.

Though drug use amongst youth in China is relatively rare – in 2014, slightly more than 100 individuals under the age of 18 were arrested for drug related offenses in Beijing – the police take it quite seriously.

Expats in particular should not make the mistake of thinking that drug use by foreigners will be handled with a slap on the wrist. Earlier this year, Chaoyang District police detained five foreign international school students after catching them smoking marijuana in one of the student's Shunyi-area villa home.

Although this raid was targetting Chinese students, remember that random drug raids can and do happen, as proven with the deportation and arrest of revellers at 2 Kolegas in August of last year.

Photo: lfb.org