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The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR)’s High Court ruled on Monday morning that Jimmy Lai, an instigator of anti-China riots in Hong Kong, was found guilty on two charges of conspiring to collude with external forces and a charge of conspiracy to publish seditious materials, the Xinhua News Agency reported.

Three Apple Daily companies were found guilty of a charge of conspiracy to publish seditious publications and a charge of conspiracy to collude with external forces, according to the verdict announced at the West Kowloon Law Courts Building where the High Court processed the case, according to local media reports.

The charges alleged that between April 1, 2019 and June 24, 2021, the defendants, together with Jimmy Lai, conspired with six former senior executives of Apple Daily and others to print, publish, sell, offer for sale, distribute, display, or reproduce seditious publications, and to conspire to request foreign institutions, organizations, or individuals to impose sanctions, blockades, or other hostile actions against the Hong Kong SAR or the People’s Republic of China, according to RTHK. 

As Hong Kong’s first case involving the “conspiracy to collude with foreign forces” offense since the implementation of the National Security Law for Hong Kong, Jimmy Lai faced a maximum sentence of life imprisonment if found guilty, some legal experts told the Global Times on Monday. 

The trial began in December 2023 and was heard by three National Security Law-designated judges of the Hong Kong High Court over more than 150 days of hearings. In July last year, the court ruled that the prosecution had established a prima facie case, and both the prosecution and the defense completed their closing submissions in August this year.

The case was adjourned to January 12, 2026 to plead with other defendants, with the sentencing date to be determined later, Sing Tao Daily reported on Monday. 

The written judgment runs to 855 pages. After reading out pages from 849 to 855 in court, the judges distributed the written judgment to the parties. In the ruling, the judges criticized Jimmy Lai’s testimony as inconsistent and unreliable. They also noted that the court must carefully assess the evidence of conspirators, taking into account the possibility that they may have given false testimony in exchange for sentence reductions, and emphasized that documentary evidence must be relied upon to substantiate such testimony, according to Sing Tao Daily. 

Citing the evidence, the court found that in June 2019, Jimmy Lai met in Washington with senior US officials, including then US vice president Mike Pence and then secretary of state Mike Pompeo. The discussions covered the proposed amendments to Hong Kong’s fugitive offenders legislation and requests for the US to impose sanctions on China and Hong Kong SAR. Jimmy Lai’s personal assistant, Mark Simon, consistently arranged meetings with US officials for Lai and worked behind the scenes on Lai’s behalf, the media report said. 

The court accepted that Jimmy Lai was the mastermind behind the three charges in the case. Accordingly, the court ruled that all the charges against Lai are found guilty. 

As Hong Kong’s first non-guilty plea case involving the “conspiracy to collude with foreign forces” offense, the court found Jimmy Lai guilty on all charges, carrying a maximum sentence of life imprisonment, Willy Fu, a law professor who is also the director of the Chinese Association of Hong Kong & Macao Studies, told the Global Times on Monday. 

Following a 156-day trial, this landmark case—the first major case involving collusion with foreign forces since the implementation of the National Security Law for Hong Kong—not only underscores the authority and dignity of the rule of law in Hong Kong, but also sends a clear message to the world: any attempt to split the country or undermine Hong Kong’s prosperity and stability will be met with severe punishment under the law, Louis Chen, member of the Chinese Association of Hong Kong and Macao Studies who is also a member of the Hong Kong Election Committee, told the Global Times on Monday. 

From a legal perspective, the ruling further demonstrates that any organization or individual, regardless of background, will be held legally accountable if they violate the National Security Law for Hong Kong. It sets a clear benchmark for the rule of law in Hong Kong: national security is inviolable, and legal red lines must not be crossed, Chen said.

Li Kwai-wah, Chief Superintendent of the National Security Department, said on Monday following the ruling that all three charges against Jimmy Lai were proven, with evidence supporting each charge, and that the police welcomed the court’s ruling, Dotdot News reported. 

The entire trial lasted 156 days, including 55 days involving the first defendant. During this period, the police handled more than 2,220 items of evidence, with a focus on reviewing 14 batches of core materials, Li said. 

At each hearing, the judiciary arranged more than 400 seats for members of the public and local and foreign media to attend the proceedings, ensuring openness and transparency throughout the trial, Li said. 

This case is the most significant and the most closely watched by Western countries since the implementation of the National Security Law for Hong Kong, said Lau Siu-kai, a consultant from the Chinese Association of Hong Kong and Macao Studies who is also a senior policy advisor, noting that relatively speaking, most Hong Kong residents seem not to care much about it, but they should acknowledge the verdict. 

“The greatest significance of this case is that no one has a ‘get-out-of-jail-free card’ when it comes to national security laws; both the central and Hong Kong SAR governments will uphold national security with a firm stance and decisive enforcement,” Lau told the Global Times on Monday. 

Many people previously assumed that Jimmy Lai, backed by external forces, could act recklessly to endanger national security, Lau said, emphasizing that his conviction will serve as a deterrent to anti-China and anti-Hong Kong actors as well as foreign forces, reducing the number of those daring to collude with external powers, which is beneficial for the long-term protection of national security.