Hong Kong Media Tycoon Jimmy Lai Wins Appeal Against 2022 Fraud Conviction

Hong Kong. Pro-democracy media tycoon Jimmy Lai has won an appeal in his 2022 fraud case. On Thursday, the Hong Kong Court of Appeal overturned the conviction against him and his co-defendant.

Previously, Lai had been sentenced to nearly six years in prison in the case. The prosecution had accused him of illegally allowing his private consulting firm to use office space rented by Apple Daily. He was convicted based on this allegation.

However, following the court's latest decision, although the fraud-related sentence has been overturned, the 78-year-old Lai will not be immediately released. Earlier this month, he was sentenced to 20 years in prison under Hong Kong's national security law for "colluding with foreign forces," which means he will remain incarcerated.

Lai is also a British citizen and is considered one of the leading figures in Hong Kong's democracy movement and a staunch critic of Beijing. He has been in custody since 2020.

Apple Daily, which he founded in 1995, was a popular tabloid critical of Beijing and became Hong Kong's largest pro-democracy newspaper. However, the paper was shut down in 2020 after Lai and key staff members were arrested.

In the fraud case, Lai's co-defendant, former executive of his media company Wong Wai-keung, was also convicted and sentenced to 21 months in prison.