A Hong Kong appeals court has reversed the fraud conviction of imprisoned pro-democracy media mogul Jimmy Lai, throwing out his nearly six-year prison sentence in a Thursday ruling.
Three appellate judges – Jeremy Poon, Anthea Pang, and Derek Pang – granted Lai’s appeal request along with that of a co-defendant in the case.
In their written decision, the justices stated: “The Court of Appeal gave them leave to appeal against their conviction, allowed their appeals, quashed the convictions and set aside the sentences.”
The media tycoon had received a sentence of five years and nine months behind bars in December 2022 after a lower court determined he violated lease agreements for Apple Daily’s office space. The court found Lai guilty of hiding the operations of a private firm called Dico Consultants Ltd within the newspaper’s building.
A second Next Digital company executive, 61-year-old Wong Wai-keung, had also been convicted on fraud charges and received a 21-month prison term.
