Turnaround in the case of billionaire Jimmy Lai. Surprise decision taken by a court in Hong Kong
Protest outside the Chinese Consulate in Los Angeles against the sentencing of press freedom tycoon Jimmy Lai, February 2026. Photo credit: Apu Gomes / Getty images / Profimedia
Pro-democracy media mogul Jimmy Lai's fraud conviction and prison sentence were overturned by a Hong Kong court on Thursday, a surprise court decision that comes shortly after Lai was jailed for 20 years on other charges, Reuters reports.
Judges Jeremy Poon, Anthea Pang and Derek Pang said they allowed the appeal by Lai and another defendant in the case because the lower court judge “made an error”.
“The Court of Appeal granted them leave to appeal against the conviction, allowed the appeals, quashed the convictions and quashed the sentences,” the judges wrote in a summary of their ruling.
Even with the fraud conviction and sentence overturned, Lai will still be jailed for 20 years, a sentence he received in another national security case under a controversial law for two counts of conspiring with foreign forces and one count of publishing material inciting sedition.
Activist Jimmy Lai's case drew global criticism from human rights groups and Western countries such as the US and Britain, and was one of the most publicized events in a long-running crackdown under a national security law imposed by Beijing after pro-democracy protests in 2019.
Thursday's legal victory was a rare one for the prominent critic of China, who has faced multiple prosecutions in recent years and described himself in court as a “political prisoner”.
Conviction for fraud
Lai was sentenced in December 2022 to five years and nine months in prison after being found guilty of breaching the terms of the Apple Daily headquarters lease by concealing the activities of a private company, Dico Consultants Ltd, in the building.
Apple Daily was a newspaper owned by Lai that was critical of Chinese power and was forced to close. Dico, also a company owned by Lai, supported the publication and printing of newspapers in addition to managing the tycoon's private affairs, his lawyer explained.
“In conclusion, we find that Apple Daily Printing had no duty to the corporation to disclose the violation of the restrictions on use or the non-alienation clauses caused by Dico's occupation and use of the said premises. With all due respect, the judge erred,” reads the decision made by the magistrates of the Court of Appeal.
“His reasoning in concluding that the applicants were responsible for concealing the facts, as alleged by the prosecution, is unfounded. He erred in making those conclusions.”
A Hong Kong government spokesman said the Justice Department would study the ruling to decide whether to appeal the Court of Appeal's decision.
His health is deteriorating
Lai's son and daughter have warned that their 78-year-old father could die in prison, given his deteriorating health after more than five years in solitary confinement.
Human rights groups and numerous democratic countries have called for Lai's release.
US President Donald Trump raised the issue in talks with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping and is expected to revisit it during a highly anticipated visit to Beijing in late March.
Who is Jimmy Lai?
Lai is the founder of the defunct Apple Daily, a widely popular Hong Kong newspaper known for its critical stances on the Chinese Communist Party and a supporter of the pro-democracy movement that swept the city between 2014 and 2019.
The movement was suppressed in June 2020 by the imposition of a harsh national security law that criminalized most forms of dissent.
Lai was first arrested and charged under this law in August 2020. Apple Daily was forced to close in 2021.
