Court clears Jimmy Lai of fraud as government slams him for ‘exploiting resources’
Court of Appeal quashes conviction, ruling prosecution failed to prove Lai had made a ‘false representation’ or could be held liable for concealment
In a judgment delivered on Thursday, the Court of Appeal ruled that although Apple Daily had breached its contract by allowing Dico Consultants to operate from its premises, the prosecution had not established why the former media boss and another executive from the paper’s parent company should be held criminally liable.
In a statement, the government said it would study the judgment to consider appealing, adding that although the breach did not reach the criminal conviction threshold, Lai had “exploited public resources for private use” for 20 years.
Lai, 78, had stood trial on two counts of fraud after being accused of concealing the operations of Dico Consultants at the now-defunct tabloid’s Tseung Kwan O headquarters for more than two decades in breach of its land lease conditions.
Wong Wai-keung, a chief administrative officer at Next Digital, was jailed for 21 months.