BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) -- Venezuelan salsa singer Oscar D'Leon was arrested and jailed when he tried to leave the country after failing to perform at a scheduled concert, officials said Tuesday.

D'Leon, known as the "Devil of Salsa," was detained Monday at the airport in Barranquilla, 700 kilometers (435 miles) north of Bogota, as he prepared to return to Venezuela, policeman Emilio Vence said in a telephone interview.

Concert organizers had filed a complaint against D'Leon, saying his failure to appear at the concert Friday caused a disturbance as disappointed fans destroyed chairs and other objects. It is illegal in Colombia for anyone with legal proceedings against them to leave the country.

"He wasn't locked up in a dungeon, but rather a room with air conditioning,"
said Vence, head of the Colombian secret police in Atlantico province. "We treated him the way someone of his stature deserves to be treated."

D'Leon, who was on the marquee to play in Barranquilla's carnival celebrations, told local Caracol radio Tuesday he backed out because organizers refused to pay an advance fee. He said he hoped "the people who have done this take time to reflect, and they should be worried because they stirred up this ballyhoo for which they are to blame, not me."

However concert organizer Gregorio Rico said an advance payment was made to the salsa star.

"We hope the city understands and knows that it's not our fault ... and that Oscar should apologize to the city," he said.

D'Leon, 61, was to appear before a judge in Cartagena later Tuesday.

The salsa star has suffered several heart attacks in recent years, but has refused to retire. He began his career in 1973 with the group Dimension Latina. Four years later, he launched a solo career during which he recorded more than 50 albums and worked with artists including Celia Cruz, Tito Puente and Arturo Sandoval.
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