Former ZTE director in sexual assault probe

China’s Ministry of Public Security and Supreme People’s Procuratorate sent a joint team on Monday to east China’s Shandong Province to inspect the sexual assault probe involving a prominent lawyer and businessman Bao Yuming.

The 48-year-old is under investigation for alleged repeated sexual assault of his foster daughter since she was 14. The investigation, which initially pronounced Bao innocent, caused an uproar in China.

Bao, also an independent non-executive director of Chinese tech giant ZTE, resigned last week. He was also sacked by Yantai Jereh Oilfield Services Group Co, an oil company in Shandong, and Southwest University of Political Science and Law in Chongqing where he served as part-time researcher.

Guangzhou-based media outlet South Reviews reported last week that Bao started raping his foster daughter one month after adopting her in 2015. The report also claimed Bao forced the girl to watch child pornography and limit her contact with anyone except him.

The report said that the girl filed a police complaint against Bao on April 8, 2019 but the case was dropped a few weeks later due to lack of evidence. The case was reopened on October 9, 2019.

According to the report, the girl, suffering from severe trauma, has tried to kill herself several times over the past three years. Bao has not yet publicly commented on the charges against him.