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George
Michael has admitted that he was in possession of Class C drugs
when he was arrested in London's West End on Sunday.
The former
Wham! star had been spotted slumped at the wheel of his car, in
the early hours of the morning.
In a
statement to the press, Michael said that the incident was his
"own stupid fault, as usual".
The singer,
who was bailed to appear at a police station next month, said he
had "no complaints" with the police.
He said:
"I was in possession of class C drugs which is an offence
and I have no complaints about the police who were professional
throughout."
Michael said
his experience of the media meant that he knew exactly what
treatment awaited him over the next week.
He said:
"I have been through enough in 24 years of dealing with the
media to know what I am in for from them this week.
"Much
of it will be inaccurate or simply untrue. I can handle that, it
is my own stupid fault, as usual."
Slumped
During the
incident, an ambulance was sent to the scene, but the
42-year-old was not taken to hospital.
A
Metropolitan police spokesman said earlier: "We were called
by a member of the public to a man seen slumped over the
steering wheel of a car on the street close to Hyde Park Corner.
"A
search of the man revealed what was believed to be controlled
substances."
But Michael
was at pains to point out that he was, in fact, fit to drive.
He said that
officers present had actually said that he should be allowed to
drive home.
Michael
added that police had immobilised his vehicle, so he eventually
got a lift home with the duty solicitor.
The star
also offered a tongue-in-cheek reference to his previous arrest
in his statement.
In 1998, he
was detained for lewd conduct in a public toilet in Los Angeles
after being spotted by an undercover police officer - which
prompted him to write the song Outside.
He said:
"PS: I promise I won't make a record out of this one - even
though it is tempting."
Successful
Last year,
Michael announced that a new film about his life was the start
of a retirement from public view.
His life
would be a much more "behind the scenes affair", he
said, adding that his own genre of music was "dead".
With
schoolmate Andrew Ridgeley in duo Wham!, Michael had a string of
hits in the 1980s with songs including Wake Me Up Before You Go
Go, Freedom and I'm Your Man.
His first
solo album Faith, released in 1988, sold more than 10m copies.
He went on
to spend much of the early 1990s locked in a legal dispute with
Sony which prevented him from recording any new material.
Despite his
low points, Michael is one of the UK's most successful artists
of all time, selling more than 85m records worldwide.
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