Jacko 'could face eight years in jail'

Pop superstar Michael Jackson could face up to eight years in jail if he is convicted of child sex offences, prosecutors in California warned.

Californian authorities issued a warrant for his arrest on charges of molesting a child and asked the pop superstar to turn himself in and surrender his passport.

Jackson’s spokesman called the allegations “scurrilous and totally unfounded.”

The 45-year-old King of Pop was accused of multiple counts of lewd or lascivious acts with a child under 14. A decade ago, Jackson was also accused of molestation but was never charged because the youngster refused to testify.

“I am sad that there is another victim out there. I feel bad for the family. I feel bad for the victim. Beyond that, I feel it is a sad thing for all those involved,” District Attorney Thomas Sneddon said at a news conference.

Each of the sex charges is punishable by three to eight years in prison, Sneddon said. He would not say how many counts Jackson faces. Bail will be set at €2.8m.

Jackson was believed to be in Las Vegas working at a recording studio.

Jackson should “get over here and get checked in,” the prosecutor said.

A throng of media watched the arrival of planes at Santa Barbara Airport. Several law enforcement vehicles also were parked on the field, but there was no sign of Jackson.

“I can confirm that he has not been arrested,” Sgt Chris Pappas of the sheriff’s department said.

Sneddon would not say when or where the alleged crimes took place or how old the youngster was. He said an affidavit outlining the details will be sealed for 45 days.

But Brian Oxman, an attorney who has represented the Jackson family over the years, told CBS that the case involves the alleged molestation of a 12-year-old boy at Jackson’s Neverland Ranch, the storybook playground where the singer has been known to hold sleepover parties with children.

CBS immediately pulled a Jackson music special planned for next Wednesday on his greatest hits and the impact on pop culture of the former child star who got his start with his brothers as a member of the singing-and-dancing Jackson 5.

“Given the gravity of the charges against Mr Jackson, we believe it would be inappropriate at this time to broadcast an entertainment special,” the network said.

On Tuesday, as many as 70 law enforcement officers spent 12 hours searching the Neverland Ranch for corroborating evidence.

Sheriff Jim Anderson said authorities had been in contact with Jackson’s lawyers and the singer had been given the chance to surrender “within a specified period of time.” Anderson refused to say how long that would be.

“I believe he’s willing to cooperate with us,” the sheriff said.

Jackson spokesman Stuart Backerman issued a statement saying the singer “has already made arrangements with the district attorney to return to Santa Barbara to immediately confront and prove these charges unfounded”.

“Michael would never harm a child in any way. These scurrilous and totally unfounded allegations will be proven false in a courtroom,” Backerman said.

The announcement of the arrest came at an often-jovial news conference with Anderson and Sneddon. The prosecutor ridiculed a suggestion from Jackson that the allegations were timed to coincide with the release of his latest album.

“Like the sheriff and I are really into that kind of music,” Sneddon said.

Asked about parents who let their children go to Neverland for sleep-overs, the sheriff responded, “My advice is don’t do it.” The remark drew laughter, and Sneddon added, “None of our kids are there.”

Jackson’s spokesman was not amused by the tone of the news conference.

“We are disturbed by the levity of the environment surrounding the announcement of these very serious charges,” Backerman said.

In 1993, Jackson had faced a child-molestation investigation that never resulted in charges because the child refused to testify. Jackson reportedly paid a multimillion-dollar settlement in that case but maintained his innocence.

Sneddon said the latest case was different because the alleged victim was cooperating with authorities. He also said the 1993 investigation prompted a change in state law that allowed authorities to force child victims to testify.

In a statement, Jackson denounced the media coverage of the raid and noted that “dreadful allegations” always seem to surface “just as another project, an album, a video is being released.” Jackson’s greatest hits album, Number Ones, came out on Tuesday.

The district attorney said the investigation had been under way for a while, and the timing was unrelated to the album.

In a TV documentary broadcast earlier this year, Jackson said he had slept in a bed with many children. “When you say bed you’re thinking sexual,” he said in the interview. “It’s not sexual, we’re going to sleep. I tuck them in. … It’s very charming, it’s very sweet.”

Jackson, a father of three, caused an international uproar last year when he displayed his baby, Prince Michael II, to fans by dangling him from a fourth-floor balcony in Germany. Jackson called the incident a “terrible mistake.".

The singer had international hits with the albums Thriller (1982), Bad (1987) and Dangerous (1991), but saw his career begin to collapse after the 1993 allegations.

The New York Post said the alleged 12-year-old victim is is a cancer patient whose “last wish” was to meet Jackson.

The boy told his psychiatrist that Jackson plied him with wine and sleeping pills, the newspaper said.

Debbie Rowe, Jackson’s ex-wife and the mother of two of his children, placed a sign saying No Comment outside her Beverly Hills home.

Fox News said that after Jackson and the boy met, the star allegedly began to pay the family’s medical bills and assisted them financially in other ways

He allegedly knew several months ago that the boy’s family was concerned about his relationship with their son, said the US TV channel.

The sex abuse allegations began to come out in the spring when the boy’s schoolmates, who apparently knew about his relationship with Jackson, began to taunt and tease him, said Fox.

The taunting caused the boy’s mother to seek legal advice.

The lawyer suggested the boy see a psychiatrist, who after speaking to the boy decided to contact the police.