證據(jù)不足，京東創(chuàng)始人劉強東免于被起訴

Richard Liu, the Chinese billionaire accused of rape nearly four months ago by a young Chinese student at the University of Minnesota, will not be charged with sexual assault, prosecutors in Minneapolis said on Friday.

明尼阿波利斯檢方在周五表示，不會以性侵罪名起訴中國億萬富豪劉強東。近四個月前，他被明尼蘇達大學一名年輕中國學生指控強奸。

The county attorney’s office said it did not find enough evidence to pursue a case against Mr. Liu, a 45-year-old internet tycoon who was arrested in the early morning of Sept. 1 but released within hours and allowed to return to China.

縣檢察官辦公室稱，沒有找到足夠的證據(jù)來提起對劉強東的訴訟，這位45歲的互聯(lián)網(wǎng)巨頭在9月1日清晨被捕，但幾小時后獲釋并獲準返回中國。

The decision could bring Mr. Liu, who founded and leads JD.com, back to a more visible role at his e-commerce behemoth. JD.com’s stock has slumped since the accusations were revealed, and Mr. Liu, whose Chinese name is Liu Qiangdong, has skipped several public engagements.

這一決定可以讓創(chuàng)立并領導京東(JD.com)的劉強東在其龐大的電商企業(yè)中重回經(jīng)常拋頭露面的角色。自控告披露以來，京東的股價大跌，劉強東也取消了多個公開活動。

“As is the case in too many sexual assault incidents, it was a complicated situation,” Mike Freeman, the Hennepin County attorney, said in a statement. “It is also similar to other sexual assault cases with the suspect maintaining the sex was consensual.”

“和很多很多性侵事件一樣，本案的情況非常復雜，”亨內平縣檢察官邁克·弗里曼(Mike Freeman)在一份聲明中表示。“與其他性侵案件的相似還在于嫌疑人堅稱性行為是兩廂情愿。”

In a statement on Chinese social media, Mr. Liu said that he had been unable “to address the situation or defend myself” to “avoid interfering with the independent investigation.”

劉強東在中國社交媒體上發(fā)布的一份聲明中稱，“為了不干擾司法公正，在美國警方和檢方的獨立調查過程中”，他無法說明情況或“為自己辯護”。

JD.com said in a statement that it was pleased with the decision. Jill Brisbois, Mr. Liu’s lawyer, reiterated in a statement her “strong belief from the very beginning that my client is innocent,” adding that “Mr. Liu’s reputation has been damaged like anyone falsely accused of a crime” because of “misinformation and speculation that has been widely circulated.”

京東在一份聲明中表示歡迎這個決定。劉強東的代理律師吉爾·布里斯布瓦(Jill Brisbois)在她的聲明里重申“從一開始就深信我的當事人是無辜的”，又說“與其他受到不實犯罪指控的人一樣，劉先生的名譽受到了損害”，因為“失實信息和猜測廣為散布”。

Wil Florin, a lawyer for the woman, said he was considering bringing a civil case, adding that prosecutors had made their decision having never met or spoken with his client. Chuck Laszewski, a spokesman for the county attorney’s office, declined to comment on Mr. Florin’s claim.

女方代理律師維爾·弗洛林(Wil Florin)表示，他正在考慮提起民事訴訟，還說檢方與他的當事人沒見過也沒談過就做出了這個決定。亨內平縣檢察官辦公室發(fā)言人查克·拉謝夫斯基(Chuck Laszewski)拒絕對弗洛林的說法予以置評。

Mr. Liu was arrested this year while taking courses at the University of Minnesota. On the night of Aug. 30, he and a group of fellow students in the academic program dined at a Japanese restaurant in Minneapolis. The occasion, involving some two dozen guests, was jovial. More than 30 bottles of wine had been brought in from a nearby liquor store.

劉強東是在明尼蘇達大學參加課程時被捕的。今年8月30日晚，他與那個學術項目的一群同學在明尼阿波利斯市一家日餐廳聚餐。20多人參加的飯局，氣氛愉快。他們從附近一家酒行買了30多瓶葡萄酒帶進餐廳。

Also present that evening was a 21-year-old woman, a Chinese student who was volunteering for the doctoral program. As she later told police, she had been invited to the dinner by another Chinese executive in the program, who asked her to sit next to Mr. Liu.

當晚在場的還有一位21歲的女性，她是為那個博士項目做志愿者的中國學生。后來她告訴警方，是參加該項目的另一名中國高管邀請她參加聚餐，還要求她坐在劉強東身邊。

She told police that she got into a car with Mr. Liu after the dinner, and he began to touch her without her consent. She asked to be taken back to her apartment, where he forced himself upon her, despite her pleas, she told police.

她告訴警方，聚餐完后她和劉強東上了一輛車，他未經(jīng)她同意就開始摸她。她要求送她回自己的公寓，在住處他不理會她的哀求強壓上來——她向警方說。

But Ms. Brisbois, in an email, said the woman was being “flirtatious” in the car and agreed to the contact with Mr. Liu. Ms. Brisbois said that the woman invited Mr. Liu into her apartment building and that “what happened in the room was entirely consensual.”

但布里斯布瓦在電子郵件中說，該女子在車里舉止“輕佻”，并且同意了劉強東的身體接觸。布里斯布瓦說，該女子邀請劉強東去她住的公寓樓，而且“房間里發(fā)生的事情完全是兩廂情愿”。

“The woman was an active and willing participant and at no time did she indicate in any way that she did not consent,” Ms. Brisbois said. The following day, the woman sent text messages to friends saying that Mr. Liu had raped her.

“這名女子是一個主動并情愿的參與者，她從未以任何方式表示她不同意，”布里斯布瓦說。第二天，該女子給朋友發(fā)短信說劉強東強奸了她。

Police were called to the apartment by a friend and fellow student, according to the county attorney’s office.

據(jù)縣檢察官辦公室透露，是一名朋友也是同學的人把警察叫到了公寓房間。

Ms. Brisbois said she spoke with the woman after Mr. Liu’s release, at the woman’s request. Over several phone calls and texts, the woman “made repeated demands for money, and threatened to make her allegations public and to sue Richard if her demands were not met,” Ms. Brisbois said.

布里斯布瓦說在劉強東獲釋后，她應女子的要求與她談了話。在幾次通話和短信中，該女子“多次索要錢財，并威脅如果她的要求得不到滿足，就把指控公之于眾，還要起訴劉強東”，布里斯布瓦說。

Mr. Florin, the woman’s lawyer, said that a lawyer for Mr. Liu initiated contact with the woman about a settlement. Mr. Florin added that many of Ms. Brisbois’ descriptions of events are “directly contradicted by eyewitness testimony.”

女方代理律師弗洛林則稱，是劉強東的律師先聯(lián)系女方談和解。弗洛林還說，布里斯布瓦的許多描述“與目擊證人的證詞明顯矛盾”。

The Minneapolis Police Department’s sex crimes unit conducted a “thorough investigation” into the case, the county attorney’s office said, followed by a “meticulous review” by four sexual assault prosecutors, a group of three men and one woman. They determined that “there were profound evidentiary problems which would have made it highly unlikely that any criminal charge could be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.”

縣檢察官辦公室稱，明尼阿波利斯警察局性犯罪調查組對案件進行了“徹底的調查”，隨后由三男一女四位性侵案件檢察官進行了“細致的審查”。他們認定“存在重大的證據(jù)問題，在合理懷疑之外坐實任何刑事指控的可能性微乎其微”。

Investigators reviewed surveillance video, text messages and witness statements. Among the evidence was footage from a body camera worn by an officer that recorded conversations between Mr. Liu and the woman at her apartment after police arrived.

調查員查看了監(jiān)控錄像、短信和證人證詞。證據(jù)當中有警察隨身佩戴攝像頭錄下的警方到場后劉強東與該女子在她公寓的談話。

The county attorney’s office declined to provide more detail, saying prosecutors “do not want to re-victimize the young woman.”

縣檢察官辦公室拒絕提供更多細節(jié)，聲稱檢方“不愿再次傷害這名年輕女子”。

In his statement on social media, Mr. Liu apologized to his wife, Zhang Zetian, and said he felt “deep regret and remorse.”

在社交媒體上的那份聲明中，劉強東向妻子章澤天道歉，說他感到“十分的自責和后悔”。

“I will continue to try in every possible way to repair the impact on my family and to fulfill my responsibility as a husband,” he said.

“我一定將竭盡全力去彌補此事對家庭對創(chuàng)傷，重新?lián)斊鹫煞虻呢熑危?rdquo;他說。

In China, the incident exploded on social media. People scrutinized Minnesota police documents, speculated about whether Mr. Liu had been set up and pondered the glimpse they had gotten into the lives of the country’s ultrawealthy business elites.

在中國，該事件引爆了社交媒體。人們仔細審讀明尼蘇達警方的文件，揣測劉強東是否被設局，回味他們得以一窺的中國超級富豪商業(yè)精英的生活。

JD.com is a proud emblem of China’s rising consumer class, and a major partner to global brands, like Adidas and Samsung, that use the platform. Walmart, Google and the Chinese internet conglomerate Tencent are all JD.com shareholders. And Mr. Liu is a celebrity tycoon whose rise from humble means to internet riches is the subject of many admiring books and television programs.

京東是中國消費者階層崛起的自豪標志，也是其平臺上如阿迪達斯、三星等全球性品牌的重要合作伙伴。沃爾瑪、谷歌和中國互聯(lián)網(wǎng)集團公司騰訊都是京東的股東。劉強東是名人富豪，他白手起家成為互聯(lián)網(wǎng)巨富的過程，成為許多圖書和電視節(jié)目的主題，很受追捧。

The company’s shares have lost around 60 percent of their value since early this year as it grappled with the accusations against Mr. Liu and slowing economic growth in China.

因為應對對劉強東的指控，加之中國的經(jīng)濟增長放緩，京東股價自今年初至今已跌去約60%。

The company’s business has been under pressure recently. China’s economy is decelerating, and competition from rivals such as Alibaba has intensified. In November, JD.com said that its customer base had shrunk for the first time since the company went public in 2014. The retailer says it still serves more than 300 million shoppers.

公司業(yè)務在最近也遇到壓力。中國經(jīng)濟在降速，與阿里巴巴等對手的競爭更激烈了。11月，京東稱其活躍用戶數(shù)自2014年公司上市以來首次下滑。這家零售商表示仍在為3億購物者服務。

The rape allegation against Mr. Liu has weighed on JD.com in part because he has never indicated who might succeed him as chief executive. Mr. Liu controls nearly 80 percent of shareholder votes at the company, thanks to a special class of stock with 20 times the voting power of regular shares.

針對劉強東的強奸指控給京東帶來壓力，還有一部分是因為他從未表示過誰可能繼任他的首席執(zhí)行官職位。由于他持有的特殊類別的股票有20倍于普通股的投票權，劉強東控制著京東公司近80%的股東投票權。

As a result, the company’s board cannot make decisions without him present. Mr. Liu once told a television interviewer that his early experience running a failed restaurant taught him the need for an iron managerial grip.

結果就是劉強東不在場時，公司董事會無法做出決議。劉強東曾在一次電視采訪中說，早年經(jīng)營一家餐館的失敗經(jīng)歷教會了他鐵腕管理的必要。

That appears to be changing, a little. In a November conference call, Mr. Liu told analysts that he would focus more on strategy and new businesses at JD.com in the future, leaving more of the management of mature businesses to subordinates.

這個情況似乎也在略微地改變。11月的一次電話會議上，劉強東告訴分析師他在未來會多關注京東的戰(zhàn)略和新業(yè)務，而把更多成熟業(yè)務交給下屬管理。