JD.com Photo: VCG

China’s major e-commerce platform JD.com on Wednesday refuted defamatory rumors about the personal lives of its founder Liu Qiangdong and his wife Zhang Zetian. The couple have filed a police report, and the case is currently under investigation, according to a statement released by the company’s official Weibo account on Wednesday.

The statement refuted the rumor about Zhang’s alleged involvement with the “Illuminati,” saying that a number of organized accounts have been actively spreading these false claims and fabricating tens of thousands of fake information online in a short period.

The conspiracy theory about the “Illuminati” has been spreading around the world for over years, claiming it to be a secret society made up of powerful individuals.

The controversy came after Zhang was seen wearing an eye-shaped brooch during an art exhibition for Tsinghua University alumni in London.

Zhou Junwu, a lawyer, released a statement via Sina Weibo on Wednesday, stating that he has been entrusted by Liu and Zhang to handle the legal issues surrounding the recent online rumors. 

After verifying with Zhang, the brooch Zhang wore at the exhibition was purely chosen to complement the event and her overall attire. The brooch’s design, origin, and other elements are entirely unrelated to any organization, the lawyer statement noted. 

Zhang’s stylist has also publicly refuted the rumor, according to the statement.

Global Times