Liu Qiangdong, CEO of JD.com Group.(Reuters)
(Bloomberg, Minneapolis) The U.S. prosecutors announced yesterday (21) local time that the authorities will not charge Liu Qiangdong, CEO of JD.com Group, who is accused of sexually assaulting a woman in the United States.
Hennepin County Prosecutor's Attorney Mike Freeman (Mike Freeman) pointed out in a statement that after analyzing surveillance video images, text messages, cameras on police officers, and eyewitness testimony, the authorities believe it is impossible to provide conclusive evidence.Therefore, Liu Qiangdong cannot be prosecuted.
The woman's lawyer condemned the decision of the procuratorial unit, saying that the procuratorial unit had not seen the woman during the investigation, and still contacted the woman or her lawyer.
The woman's lawyer criticized the US prosecutors for not prosecuting Liu Qiangdong: This is why sexual assault victims are afraid to come forward
After the U.S. prosecutors made a decision not to prosecute Liu Qiangdong, the founder of JD.com, the lawyer representing the woman involved publicly criticized it.
On December 21, local time, Reuters reported that Wil Florin, the lawyer for the girl involved in the charges against Liu Qiangdong, said that the decision not to prosecute by the Hennepin County Prosecutor's Office in Minnesota, the United States, reflected why victims of sexual assault were afraid.come forward.
Those investigators never met the victim, never spoke to her, and never sought a meeting with her attorney.Wil Florin said in a statement to Reuters that her story will be spoken out, and that as her lawyers, we will not allow her to lose her dignity.
According to the Associated Press report that day, Florin also criticized the prosecutor's office for waiting until before the Christmas holiday to release its decision, saying that prosecutors did not even meet with her once, in accordance with common protocol, to inform them of their intentions.
The Paper reporter asked whether the Hennepin County Prosecutor's Office had never met the victim and the lawyer, and a spokesman for the office responded that it had no comment.
According to the Associated Press report that day, a Minneapolis Police Department spokesperson responded that the police had talked to the woman several times (a number of times).
On December 21, local time, the Hennepin County Prosecutor's Office stated in a statement to The Paper that it would not file a lawsuit against Liu Qiangdong, a Chinese businessman accused of sexual assault.The statement stated that after a thorough investigation by the Minneapolis Police Department's Sex Crimes Division and a meticulous review by four senior sexual assault prosecutors, the case was deemed to have serious evidentiary problems, which made any criminal charges extremely unlikely.proved beyond a reasonable doubt.
Like many sexual assault cases, the circumstances of this case are very complicated.Hennepin County Prosecutor Mike middot; Freeman said that, like many other sexual assault cases, the suspect insisted the sex was consensual.As we reviewed surveillance footage, text messages, police body cam video, and witness statements, it became clear that we could not meet our burden of proof, and therefore we were unable to press charges.We won't go into details because we don't want to re-victimize this young lady.
In this statement, the U.S. prosecutors also briefly disclosed the facts of the case, saying that on August 30, Liu Qiangdong and many friends and colleagues ate at a restaurant in a residential area. One of the people invited to the dinner was a 21-year-oldschoolgirl.
Based on what they learned from the woman that night, the police eventually ended their call and took Liu Qiangdong back to his own hotel.Liu Qiangdong was arrested later that day at the University of Minnesota.statement said.
The Hennepin County Prosecutor's Office also emphasized that it took three months to review the case and make a decision, which is not unusual for a sexual assault case, especially in a case where no one is in custody.This has nothing to do with Liu Qiangdong's status as a wealthy foreign businessman.
The Hennepin County Attorney's Office and Hennepin County Attorney Freeman declined to comment further on the case.
At the end of August 2018, a 21-year-old female international student at the University of Minnesota accused Liu Qiangdong of raping her after a dinner party in Minneapolis, USA.Liu Qiangdong has always denied this.
It is worth mentioning that Reuters had previously reported in detail the details of Liu Qiangdong's involvement in the sexual assault case.
Reuters reported in November that the alleged rape occurred at a dinner hosted by Liu Qiangdong at a Japanese restaurant, where the student was seated next to Liu.Near the end of the party, the woman said she was drunk and needed help getting home, the accusing woman said in a recorded police interview.
However, Ms. Jill Brisbois, Liu Qiangdong's attorney, said in a public statement on the facts of the case to The Paper (www.thepaper.cn) on December 21 that Liu Qiangdong did not know the woman before the dinner at the Origami restaurant.Both Liu Qiangdong and the woman drank wine during the dinner.Liu Qiangdong was not drunk, and the woman did not show any signs of drunkenness.
Everything that happens in the room is voluntary.The lady was very active throughout the whole process, without any reluctance.Jill Brisbois said in a statement that the woman repeatedly asked for money in several calls and text messages, and threatened to make the matter public and sue Liu Qiangdong if her request was not met.Liu Qiangdong firmly refused to negotiate with him.
The statement released by the Hennepin County prosecutor did not disclose too many details of the case.
