A Chinese-Canadian businessman is being held without charge in China over a dispute with his distribution company's Hong Kong supplier, according to a newspaper report.
Jimmy Chen Jian Yuan, of Mississauga, has been detained without formal charge in Fujian, China for four months, the Toronto Star reports.
Chen, 50, was detained by customs officials upon his arrival Oct. 13 at Shenzhen on the Hong Kong-mainland border.
He had been headed to a trade show in Guandong, China and a scheduled meeting with executives at the supplier's parent company in mainland China, Wanlida Group.
Chen was transferred to a police station in Fujian, where he remains in custody. The Canadian consul from Guangdong has visited Chen twice, the Star reports.
The "notice of detention" issued by police claim Chen was being held for "the alleged criminal offence of contract fraud," based on Wanlida's allegations that he had defrauded the company of US$5 million in inventory.
The company owned by Chen distributed DVD players and other electronic equipment under the Malata brand name to stores such as the Bay, Sears, Future Shop and Best Buy.
The Ontario Superior Court of Justice has scheduled a hearing into the dispute.
In 2005, the Hong Kong company that worked with Chen filed a civil suit in Ontario, accusing him of not paying on time.
Chen's company argued there had been shipping delays and quality issues with the Chinese products.
Chen's Beijing lawyer, Li Ke Min, has described the case as "a typical economic dispute instead of contract fraud."
Li argued that China's courts have no jurisdiction because Chen never entered into a direct contract with the mainland China company.
Chen's detention follows that of another Canadian citizen, 38-year-old Huseyin Celil, who has been jailed for alleged terrorist links in western China's Xinjiang region.
Celil has been in Chinese custody on terror-related charges since March, when he was detained in Uzbekistan while visiting his wife's family.
He was then sent to China under an extradition agreement between the two nations.
Ottawa says he has dual citizenship and that a Canadian diplomat should be allowed to visit him, while China does not recognize his Canadian citizenship.
