Chinese billionaire and JD.com chief Richard Liu released after US arrest over sexual misconduct claims
Company says founder was falsely accused in American state of Minnesota
The founder and chief executive of Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com, Richard Liu Qiangdong, was arrested in the US state of Minnesota on a charge of criminal sexual conduct and later released, a county sheriff’s department jail roster showed.
The charge against Liu, 45, was made just before midnight on Friday, and he was released just after 4pm on Saturday, according to the Hennepin County Sheriff website. It showed Liu was “released pending complaint”.
JD.com said in a statement on Sunday that Liu was falsely accused.
“During a business trip to the United States, Mr Liu was questioned by police in Minnesota in relation to an unsubstantiated accusation,” the company said.
“The local police quickly determined there was no substance to the claim against Mr Liu, and he was subsequently able to resume his business activities as originally planned,” it said.
JD.com did not immediately provide further details, and Liu could not immediately be reached.
John Elder, a spokesman for the Minneapolis Police Department, said the investigation was still ongoing.
The department decided not to hold Liu in custody while it is conducting its investigation, Elder said, declining to provide details about the reasons for the arrest.
