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The arrest of Chinese billionaire Liu Qiangdong last week in the United States, suspected of rape, was reported after a group dinner attended by Mr. Liu and the woman alleging the assault, according to a person familiar with the story. wife.
Mr. Liu and the woman, a Chinese student who attended the University of Minnesota, sat at the same table on Thursday at Origami, a Japanese restaurant in Minneapolis, said this person.
Mr. Liu, the chief executive of the 45-year-old Chinese online trading company JD.com Inc., was arrested for alleged rape on Friday at 1 am, according to Minneapolis police records. He was released without bail the next day and returned to Beijing, where JD.com is based.
On Wednesday, in the midst of these allegations, JD.com's US depository stocks fell 11%, their biggest single-day drop since the company's announcement in 2014.
Mr. Liu's lawyer stated that his client did not commit any fault.
"He will never be charged, ever. Amen! Said Earl Gray, a Minnesota-based criminal defense lawyer representing Mr. Liu.
Mr. Gray did not respond when asked if Mr. Liu and his accuser had dined and drunk together hours before the alleged assault. JD.com did not respond to a request for comment on the dinner.
No charges have been filed against Mr. Liu, also known as Richard Liu.
After his arrest on Friday night, he was released Saturday when Minneapolis police decided he would not be able to complete his investigation by Tuesday at 11am. Under Minnesota law, police may detain individuals Sundays and holidays do not count, giving the police more time during the Labor Day weekend. The officers have determined that this is still not enough, said Minneapolis Police Department spokesman John Elder on Wednesday.
"To do this properly, it is a thorough investigation. When we have the opportunity, we want to make sure we do not neglect anything, "Elder said. "We are very confident that the moment has come for us to reconnect with this investigation, we can do it."
Mr. Liu was in town for a week of residency at the University of Minnesota's Carlson School of Management for his PhD program in Business Administration in China.
A group of about 20 people drank and ate at the restaurant on Thursday night, say those present. People could not tell if Mr. Liu was among them.
The group brought their own bottles of wine and also spent about $ 1,900 for food, sake and other drinks, according to one of the people. A man, dressed in outerwear, was called "boss" by several members of the group. Before the end of the evening, around 9 pm, several men put their heads on the table, said one of the people.
The public records show that Mr. Liu was booked in Hennepin County Local Prison at 11:32 pm. Friday, almost 24 hours after the alleged assault. The police refused to discuss the sequence of events or other aspects of the case.
Wall Street Journal photos show Mr. Liu handcuffed at the Carlson Global Institute at the University of Minnesota, just steps from the Carlson School's management center, where program participants spend their days. He was released approximately 16 hours later at 16:05. the Saturday.
The investigation is still ongoing, the police said, but Liu's lawyers said his release suggested there was no evidence of misconduct. The authorities did not comment on the reason for the publication.
Given the seriousness of the allegation, the release is "very, very strange," said David Levine, a law professor at Hastings University at the University of California, who is familiar with criminal law.
"The risk of flight is enormous," said Mr. Levine. "He is a person with a lot of assets. Even bail would not have meant anything because he could afford any amount of bail. "
China and the United States do not have extradition treaties. If the authorities accuse Mr. Liu and issue a warrant, the Chinese government may refuse to hand him over, said Mr. Levine. In this case, the Hennepin County Attorney in Minneapolis may ask the Federal Bureau of Investigation to post a "red notice" on Interpol, which asks member countries to locate and temporarily arrest an individual. China and the United States are both members of Interpol.
Chuck Laszewski, spokesman for the Hennepin County Attorney's Office, said that if it became necessary, the office would get a warrant, adding that the office had someone "who's busy extraditing him". ".
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