Jimmy Lai's fraud conviction overturned by Hong Kong court in rare legal win for activist

"Lai, 78, an outspoken critic of China's ruling Communist party who founded the now defunct Apple Daily, will stay in prison because weeks ago he was sentenced to 20 years after being convicted in another case brought under a China-imposed national security law. It is more than five years since he was arrested under the law, which was used in a years-long crackdown on many of Hong Kong's leading activists."

"But judges at the higher court ruled the prosecution had failed to prove beyond reasonable doubt that the defendants had made false representations, throwing out both convictions. The ruling could slightly reduce Lai's total prison time. The judges handling Lai's national security case allowed the two sentences to be served concurrently for only two years, with the other 18 years to be added after the fraud sentence."

"The conviction that was overturned on Thursday was from an earlier fraud case in which prosecutors alleged that a consultancy firm controlled by Lai had used office space that his media business rented for publication and printing purposes. Lai was sentenced to five years and nine months in prison in 2022 after being found guilty of two fraud charges."

Jimmy Lai, a 78-year-old pro-democracy activist and founder of Apple Daily, had his fraud convictions overturned by a Hong Kong appellate court. The original fraud case involved allegations that a consultancy firm controlled by Lai improperly used office space rented by his media business. He was initially sentenced to five years and nine months in 2022. However, the appellate judges ruled the prosecution failed to prove beyond reasonable doubt that false representations were made, overturning both convictions. Despite this legal victory, Lai remains imprisoned following a 20-year sentence under China's national security law imposed five years ago. The concurrent sentencing arrangement means he could potentially spend the remainder of his life in prison, raising international concerns about press freedom in Hong Kong.

Read at www.theguardian.com