Jimmy Lai told eight lies in court: local media in HKSAR

On December 15, a panel of three judges delivered a verdict in the conspiracy case involving Jimmy Lai Chee-ying, founder of Next Digital, and three companies formerly affiliated with the now-defunct Apple Daily. During the trial, the prosecution and the judges pointed out multiple false statements made by Lai in his self-defense, identifying eight lies he told to deliberately mislead the court, according to local media outlet Sing Tao Daily in China's Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR).

Concealed the true purpose of his U.S. trip to secure permission to travel while on bail

On May 5, 2020, Lai was granted bail in connection with a criminal intimidation case, on the condition that he was not permitted to leave Hong Kong. However, evidence presented in court showed that his secretary had booked a round-trip flight to the United States from June 24 to July 19 that year. Lai admitted in court that he had planned to meet with U.S. government officials in Washington during that period from July 4 to 11.

On June 12, 2020, Lai applied to the court to change his bail conditions to enable his trip to the U.S., citing four reasons: visiting his newborn granddaughter, discussing business matters, meeting with Apple Daily's service providers, and pursuing the acquisition of a hotel. He omitted any mention of his planned meetings with U.S. officials. The prosecution argued that Lai had deliberately concealed the political nature of his trip. Lai admitted in court that he considered the meetings with U.S. officials "too politically sensitive" to disclose and believed that revealing the true purpose of the trip would reduce his chances of obtaining permission to travel.

Denied having heard of IPAC

Lai had posted or reposted multiple tweets from the anti-China organization Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China (IPAC) with its hashtags. However, Lai claimed in court that he had "never heard of" IPAC in an attempt to exonerate himself. The prosecution presented evidence revealing that, on June 13, 2020, Lai shared a Wall Street Journal article titled "Global Alliance of Lawmakers Faces Challenge on Confronting China" on Twitter (now renamed to X), tagging it with "#IPACGlobal." In response, IPAC cofounder Luke de Pulford sent Lai a message via WhatsApp to express his gratitude, to which Lai replied, "You're welcome." Citing this exchange, Justice Alex Lee Wan-tang questioned Lai's claim of knowing nothing about the organization.

Denied frequently issuing editorial instructions

Lai admitted in court that he had issued only two editorial directives to Apple Daily's management team – one instructed full coverage of Anson Chan Fang On-sang's meeting with then-U.S. Vice President Mike Pence, and the other ordered a front-page ad in Apple Daily to prompt every reader to write a letter to urge then-U.S. President Donald Trump to prevent the enactment of the Hong Kong SAR National Security Law.

Evidence presented in court, however, showed that Lai had issued far more than two editorial instructions. For example, on April 27, 2019, Lai sent a message to then-CEO Cheung Kim-hung, suggesting that coverage of Lam Wing-kee's story would encourage more people to take to the streets the following day. At the same time, he also messaged Cheung and then-associate publisher Chan Pui-man, remarking that the "situation was too quiet" and urging them to explore ways to mobilize the public to protest. Furthermore, on June 3 and 6, 2019, Lai sent messages to both Cheung and Chan, instructing them to arrange interviews with students to encourage other students to participate in the Civil Human Rights Front's "June 9 March." He also instructed Cheung to strengthen publicity efforts to encourage cyclists to join the demonstrations that day. Lai later directed Chan to adopt a softer tone in reporting on the storming of the Legislative Council building, instructing that the coverage should evoke sympathy for the young people and help sustain public momentum for the anti-extradition movement. Although Lai initially denied that these were editorial instructions, he eventually conceded under questioning by the judge that they could be "understood as instructions." 

Denied knowledge of the illegal 'primary election' despite having funded it

Lai claimed that he knew nothing about the illegal "primary election" initiated by the "pro-democracy" camp when he met Wayland Chan Tsz-wah, an accomplice witness in Lai's case, on December 31, 2019. However, WhatsApp messages indicated that Lai was already aware of the primaries. On December 12, 2019, he instructed his "apprentice," Simon Lee, to source software for online voting in the "primaries" and indicated that he would cover the related expenses. Confronted with the evidence, Lai had no choice but to admit that he had made false statements.

Denied having contact with the 'Lam Chau Team'

Lai claimed he had known nothing about the "Lam Chau Team" ("mutual destruction squad") and its connection with Finn Lau Cho-dik, better known as "Brother Lam Chau." However, solid evidence revealed that Lai was closely associated with them.

He admitted to meeting both Wayland Chan and Lau at his residence in Taipei, southeast China's Taiwan region, in January 2020. Besides, on October 24 of the same year, he tweeted "Salute to Brother Lam Chau" with the hashtag "#standwithhk" as well. What's more, he even posted it with a link to a news report on Lau published in the Apple Daily English version, which identified Lau as the head of the team.

Lai admitted the post was from his own hand but claimed it was Simon Lee who added the hashtags. Justice Lee pointed out that the report clearly described Lau's leadership in the "Lam Chau Team" and that Lai must have read the report because he cited it in his post, which proved that Lai had lied about knowing nothing of the "Lam Chau Team."

Denied having requested U.S. sanctions

Lai initially insisted that sanctions against China and its HKSAR were never discussed at his meeting with then-U.S. Vice President Mike Pence and then-Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in July 2019. However, a report published in Apple Daily on July 25, 2019, showed that Lai had urged Pompeo to facilitate U.S. sanctions against officials in the HKSAR and the Chinese mainland whom he accused of "suppressing" the protests in Hong Kong.  The contradiction forced Lai to change his account, admitting that he had indeed raised the idea but had "forgotten."

Covering up his acknowledgment of Elmer Yuen's instigation

On May 29, 2020, Apple Daily Digital platform director Cheung Chi-wai, as instructed by Lai, arranged for activist Elmer Yuen Gong-yi to record a video at the Apple Daily building, calling for the U.S. to sanction China. Lai initially claimed that he was unaware of its content. But evidence demonstrated that Yuen's daughter, Erica Yuen Mi-ming, had sent Lai the full draft of the open letter approximately two hours before filming, to which he replied, "This is a good letter." Under the judge's questioning, Lai was compelled to admit that he had a "wrong memory."

Denied Apple Daily's involvement in his talk show

Lai's initial testimony claimed that his online talk show, "Live Chat with Jimmy Lai," was purely personal business and unrelated to Apple Daily, with no instructions issued to the newspaper's management team regarding the online program. Evidence, however, proved that staff members of Apple Daily were extensively involved in producing and promoting the talk show, and it was commonly understood among senior executives that company resources should be allocated to it. Lai also routinely requested feedback from Apple Daily executives after each episode. He later conceded that the program was actually connected to Apple Daily.

(Cover: File photo of Jimmy Lai Chee-ying, founder of Next Digital. /VCG)

(With input from agencies)