Prosecutors at the Hennepin County Attorney's office are weighing in competing for evidence pointing out to the alleged rape case filed against JD.com chief executive officer, Richard Liu, as a slate of new details emerged this week, further blurring the prosecution's case against the accused.
A report from Reuters said that local prosecutors are sifting through the weight of evidences in hopes to move the rape case beyond the argument that was grounded on unsubstantiated accounts of the said event.
One of the apparent issues pointed out by the prosecution is the differing accounts on what really happened on the night of August 30 wherein Liu made sexual attempts on a 21-year-old student from the University of Minnesota.
Less than 24 hours after the purported incident, the Hennepin County Sheriff's Office made the arrest on Liu on grounds of rape complaints but he was later released as initial determination suggests there was no crime done.
Another aspect of the case being looked into was the complainant's early hesitance to file charges against Liu.
Liu's legal camp led by his attorney, Jill Brisbois, reiterates in an emailed response given to the news outlet that the innocence of the accused would soon become more apparent as more and more evidences are being disclosed.
As quoted over at CNBC, Brisbois criticized Reuters' involvement in running the story which, according to the lawyer, was based on unsubstantiated information given to them by unconfirmed sources. These people who claimed to have knowledge of the issue, Brisbois added, clearly have an agenda. Their client, on the other hand, was trapped in a situation wherein he couldn't possibly defend his side out of respect for the judicial process in the United States where he was shortly indicted.
Meanwhile, the complainant's attorney, Will Florin offered a response on their camp saying that the case was as clear as day - Liu forced the victim to engage in a non-consensual sex. The woman's initial hesitance to press charges, on the other hand, was definitely understandable given the fact that she was still reeling over the events that occurred to her. Moreover, she knew exactly who she's coming up against with, Liu being a person of prominence not only in China but around the world.
Florin said that it's common for reluctance, fear and confusion to occur at the same time.
In connection to this, it appears that Liu's current legal debacle has severely affected JD.com, whose shares, according to Seeking Alpha, has taken a deep plunge since his arrest.
