On August 31, 2018, Liu was arrested in
Minneapolis,
Minnesota with the charge of "
criminal sexual conduct".[1][2] The complainant is a 21-year-old Chinese student who attended a dinner party with Liu on the night of August 30.[3] After the party ended at 9:30 PM, the complainant and Liu returned to her apartment, where she alleges the rape occurred at 1:00 AM.[4][5] Liu was released pending further investigation and returned to Beijing.[6]
On September 2, 2018, JD.com issued a statement that the company would take legal action against "false reporting or rumors" after the local police found "no substance to the claim against Mr. Liu".[6][7][8][9] Three American
law firms have alleged that this statement was misleading and announced a
class-action lawsuits in response.[10][11] Liu's attorneys denied any wrongdoing[3] and claimed that the charges are not supported by evidence.[12]
On December 21, 2018, The office of the Hennepin County Attorney said they had not found enough evidence to charge Liu.[13][14]