Bieber released from LAX detention after returning from Asia


Justin Bieber was taken into custody after landing at Los Angeles International Airport  from Japan on Thursday afternoon. Several hours later, shortly before 7 p.m., PDT, the pop star was seen leaving through a side door exit, according to Los Angeles television news reports. Bieber smiled as he dodged paparazzi on his way to a waiting car.

Bieber was detained "...in a U.S. Customs and Border Patrol area … upon his return from Asia, sources told the LATimes. No "formal action" was taken against Bieber, according to the sources.

The sources told the Times that Bieber’s questioning was not a formal arrest or detention.

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Canadian-born Bieber, 20, has a list of legal woes, including DUI charges in Miami, an arrest in Toronto and a Los Angeles County vandalism investigation after he was accused of egging a neighbor’s house in January.  The homeowner claimed damage of at least $20,000, making the alleged crime a felony.

The pop star drew fire from South Korea and China after stepping into a bitter international dispute over Japan's wartime aggression.  (See Reuters video, above.)

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