Local music superstar Ho Ngoc Ha and billionaire hubby Nguyen Quoc Cuong voluntarily paid their fine after pictures capturing the pair riding a motorbike without helmets were leaked on the Internet last week.

Ho Ngoc Ha and Nguyen Quoc Cuong

Ho Ngoc Ha and Quoc Cuong wrote on their Facebook page on Tuesday that they went to a police station to pay VND 570,000 (US$ 27) for their traffic violation although there was no request from the authorities for themto do so.

The leaked pictures triggered a wave of excitement among Ha’s broad fan base, who rarely have chance to see such moments from their idol’s daily life.

Meanwhile, they sparked criticism from others, who opined that as an influential figure in the entertainment industry, Ha should not set a bad example by violating traffic rules.

Ha’s spokesperson commented that the pictures were taken on an evening when the pair went out for some ice-cream at a nearby shop in their rich Phu My Hung neighborhood.

“They rode on a residential road,” the spokesperson said, adding that the shop was just a few hundred meters away from their house, and so the pair thought they did not need to wear helmets.

Newswire Vietnamnet opined that the powerful couple’s action was to ease the clash of opposing ideas, and prove that a star of Ha’s calibre would not need to pull a publicity stunt like that.

The controversial pictures were said to be taken by one of the music star's fans

Source: Tuoitrenews