Real estate boss gets arrested for assault

HONG KONG - Reuters

Hong Kong police have arrested the chairman of one of China’s largest property developers, Agile Property Holdings, in connection with a case of alleged indecent assault, the firm said on Friday.

Chen Zhuo Lin, known as Chan in Cantonese, was arrested on Aug. 30, Agile said in a filing to the Hong Kong stock exchange.

Hong Kong police confirmed in an email to Reuters that a 28-year-old woman claimed to have been assaulted on July 10 by Chen, at a unit on Purves Road. Chen owns a home on Purves Road in the luxury district of Jardine’s Lookout. The Chinese-language press has reported that a personal assistant of Chen’s had leveled the accusations.

The arrest comes at a time when Chinese property companies are under pressure from government efforts to make housing more affordable in the world’s second-largest economy.

Chen earned 3.7 million yuan in 2011

A 50-year-old man named Chan made a statement at Wan Chai police station on Aug. 30 after which he was arrested, and must report back to police in October, the police told Reuters in an email. Chen has been released on bail.

Chen, who founded Agile, earned a salary of 3.7 million yuan last year, according to a Thomson Reuters database. He controls the bulk of the stock. His family trust, Top Coast Investment, owns 63 percent of the company’s shares.

Agile’s posted property sales of 31.5 billion yuan ($5 billion) in 2011, ranking it ninth among listed Chinese developers.