US actor Michael Douglas said his family was "devastated" by the arrest of his son, Cameron, accused by authorities of selling large amounts of methamphetamine.

"The family is devastated and very disappointed in Cameron's recent behavior," Douglas and his ex-wife Diandra said in their first reaction to their son's arrest.

"Any family who has dealt with substance abuse knows how devastating it can be," added the statement released to People magazine.

According to the indictment filed with a federal court in Manhattan last month, 30-year-old Cameron Douglas was arrested at Hotel Gansevoort, which bills itself as "New York City's first luxury urban resort" in the exclusive Meatpacking District, on charges of distributing the illegal drug.

Douglas was then released on bail and confined to an apartment.

He is now held at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in New York City after violating the terms of his house arrest for allegedly asking his girlfriend to bring him heroin stashed in an electronic toothbrush, local media reported, quoting a prison spokesperson.

His girlfriend, Kelly Sott, was arrested after the incident.

The Drug Enforcement Administration provided a detailed account of Douglas's alleged operations, which included dispatching one-pound (0.45-kilogram) shipments of methamphetamine, a psychostimulant also known as crystal meth, by Federal Express in exchange for payments of several thousand dollars.

When police caught up with him last week, Douglas was about to mail another drug shipment, according to the New York Daily News. He was arrested twice before, in 1999 and 2007, on drug-related charges.

Douglas, who could face at least 10 years and possibly life in prison if convicted, has starred in three films, including "It Runs in The Family" (2003), alongside his father and grandfather, renowned Hollywood actor Kirk Douglas.

Michael Douglas, who is married to actress Catherine Zeta-Jones, won an Oscar for his leading role in 1987's "Wall Street" and has starred in "Fatal Attraction," "Traffic" and "You, Me and Dupree."

Source: AFP