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A Hong Kong court found media mogul and pro-democracy activist Jimmy Lai not guilty of criminal intimidation, ending one of several cases against him after his high-profile arrest under a new national security law.
Thursday’s verdict was for a case dating back to 2017 and was unrelated to his arrest last month.
Lai, who is a key critic of Beijing, had used foul language when confronting a reporter for Oriental Daily News, a major competitor to Lai’s Apple Daily tabloid.
However, the police only charged him in February this year.
The mainland Chinese-born media mogul has pleaded not guilty.
He smiled after the verdict was read and shook hands with the supporters who filled the courtroom.
Lai’s case comes after he was arrested for alleged collusion with foreign forces on August 10, making him the highest-profile person to be arrested under Beijing-imposed law.
The 71-year-old had been a frequent visitor to Washington, where he met with officials, including U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, to rally support for Hong Kong’s democracy, prompting Beijing to label him a “traitor”.
After Lai’s arrest in August, some 200 police officers searched the offices of his newspaper, Apple Daily.
The national security law punishes any act that China considers subversion, secession, terrorism and collusion with foreign forces with up to life imprisonment. Critics say it crushes freedoms, while supporters say it will bring stability after protracted anti-China and pro-democracy protests last year.
Lai’s Apple Daily has competed with the pro-Beijing Oriental Daily for readers in the special administrative region. In 2014, the Oriental Daily published a fake obituary for Lai, stating that he had died of AIDS and many types of cancer.
Prosecutors in the case said Lai had intimidated the Oriental Daily reporter.
Lai’s lawyers said that Lai had been followed by reporters for three years and that his comments were not intended to harm the reporter, but expressed their exasperation.
Lai also faces separate court cases for illegal assemblies related to anti-government protests last year.
