Liu Qiangdong, the founder and CEO of Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com was arrested over the weekend in Minneapolis for sexual-misconduct allegations. Qiangdong is one of the richest men in China and finally returned after being arrested in the United States over a sexual misconduct allegation.
The 16th-richest man in China was arrested on Friday night and released 16 hours later during a business trip in Minneapolis. The Hennepin County Sheriff jail records provide evidence that he was released without requiring bail.
John Elderman, a spokesperson from the Minneapolis police department said on Monday that Liu “was released pending formal complaint, which means he is not charged at this time.” However, he did mention to Business Insider that police were still investigating the incident.
Liu’s Chinese E-commerce giant JD.com said in a statement on the Chinese micro-blogging site Weibo, that Liu “has now returned to China to continue work as normal,” as of Monday evening local time.
Elderman told the BBC on Sunday that “there is absolutely no restriction on his travel. The understanding is that if we need to get in touch with him, we will be able to do so.” The Washington Post also reported that China’s Foreign Ministry said on Monday that they too launched an investigation into Liu’s arrest.
The details of the allegations remain unclear and Elder declined to provide any further details on the case when asked by Business Insider “because this is an active criminal investigation.”
Although Elder declined to comment, JD.com further commented on Sunday saying Liu was falsely accused and that it “will take the necessary legal action against false reporting or rumors.”
Liu’s arrest comes shortly after he tried to separate himself from a different sexual-misconduct scandal. In late July, Liu said he didn’t know anything regarding a sexual assault that was alleged to have taken place after a party hosted himself in Sydney back in 2015. The allegations were false, and he was not accused of any wrongdoing in that case.
