Hong Kong's Court of Appeal overturned media tycoon Jimmy Lai's 2022 fraud conviction on Thursday, nullifying a nearly six-year sentence. The pro-democracy figure, a fierce Beijing critic detained since 2020, remains imprisoned on a 20-year national security term imposed earlier this month.
Jimmy Lai, 78, won his appeal against the fraud conviction for breaching lease terms by operating his consultancy in Apple Daily's offices. The Court of Appeal ruled the prosecution failed to prove criminal intent and that the lower court ignored relevant factors on the defendants' state of mind. Lai had been sentenced to five years and nine months plus a HK$2 million (US$256,000) fine; co-defendant Wong Wai-keung received 21 months.
This follows Lai's February 9 sentencing to 20 years for national security violations (see related article in series). Apple Daily, his tabloid critical of Beijing founded in 1995, closed in 2021 after arrests under the national security law.
Lai's daughter Claire called the ruling a 'PR move,' insisting the rule of law is broken and her father remains unjustly detained. His international legal lead, Caoilfhionn Gallagher KC, said it 'changes nothing' amid health concerns. Critics view Lai's cases as evidence of eroding freedoms post-2020 security law, decried by UK and US as silencing dissent; authorities defend it for stability.
Health worries persist: reports note deteriorating conditions in detention, denied by officials.