JD stocks plummet as police report shows rape allegations
โNew revelations Wednesday that Minnesota police arrested Chinese billionaire Richard Qiangdong Liu ๅๅผบไธ on suspicion of rape rather than assault have intensified scrutiny on the high-profile case as stocks in JD.com, one of Chinaโs largest online retailers, plummeted,โ report Danielle Paquette and Luna Lin of the Washington Post.
- Yesterday, we usedย the phrase โsexual misconductโ while some media reports used โsexual assault.โ
- The Washington Post obtained a police report that โconfirmed the specifics of the accusation against the technology magnate,โ and โalso indicated that body-camera footage was recorded.โ
- The police say the investigation remains open.ย JDโs shares โhave dropped 16 percent in the past two days, with its U.S. shares closing at $26.30 on Wednesday,โ according to CNBC. โThe stock has plummeted 37 percent this year.โ
- Liu controls nearly 80 percentย of the voting rights of JD and is both chairman and CEO. If he is in legal trouble, the companyโs future is uncertain.
- More reporting:
- US law firms launch investigation against JD.com after rape allegations against CEOย / The Diplomat (paywall)
- Billionaire JD.com founder Liu investigated for rapeย / FT (paywall)
- Richard Liu of JD.com was arrested on a rape allegation, police sayย / NYT (paywall)
- Arrest details revealed: JD boss Liu was accused of first-degree rape, say US police, as charges are consideredย / SCMP
