A court in Hong Kong has begun hearing a plea for a more lenient sentence for British media tycoon Jimmy Lai, who was found guilty last month in a case that has been widely condemned as politically motivated.
The four-day mitigation plea process is the final step before sentencing in Lai’s landmark national security trial, which could see the ailing pro-democracy activist jailed for life.
Lai, 78, founded the now-shuttered Apple Daily newspaper and was a passionate advocate for the city’s democratic freedoms. The court found him guilty of two counts of conspiracy to collude with foreign forces and conspiracy to publish seditious material in December.
His conviction has raised international concerns about the curtailing of press freedom and human rights in the former British colony, which returned to Chinese rule in 1997.
Leaders from around the world have criticised Lai’s conviction, with the British government calling it a “politically motivated prosecution” and demanding his immediate release. US president Donald Trump, who had discussed Lai’s case with China, said he felt “so badly” and would keep raising the matter with China’s Xi Jinping.
Lai, alongside other co-defendants involved in the case, is pleading for a shorter sentence during the four-day mitigation hearings.
The maximum penalty for their convictions is life imprisonment. Sentencing will come later.
When Lai entered the courtroom, he pressed his palms together, an apparent gesture to express gratitude, and smiled at those sitting in the public gallery, including his wife, Teresa. The media tycoon appeared to be in good spirits and greeted a convicted Apple Daily editor who was also sitting in the dock.
Lai sat in the glass dock with eight other defendants as his lawyer, Robert Pang, told the West Kowloon court that his client suffered from hypertension, diabetes and cataracts among other medical conditions, and solitary confinement for more than 1,800 days had imposed an “additional burden”.
“Every day he spends in prison will bring him that much closer to the end of his life,” said Mr Pang, while adding that such ailments were not life-threatening.
The defence and prosecution teams presented wildly different figures for Lai’s weight during his time in prison, with Mr Pang saying he had lost 11kg between weighing 86kg in June 2024 and 75kg in April 2025.
Lead prosecutor Anthony Chau cited a 9 January medical report that called Lai’s condition “stable”. He said Lai had weighed 80kg when he entered custody in December 2020 and this month weighed 79.2kg, suggesting his weight largely remained the same.
Mr Pang said there was either a “typo” in the prosecution’s records for Lai’s 2020 weight or they were suggesting he had gained 6kg while in prison. Judge Esther Toh responded by saying she would not be surprised by this, saying: “I gain weight while I’m on holiday and sitting at home.”
Lai’s supporters had queued up for hours or even days outside the court building to secure a seat in the public gallery. Retiree Simon Ng, a former Apple Daily reader, said he hoped to get a chance to see Lai. “I want to let him know that he’s not alone. Many people support him,” he said.
“It feels like the end of the road for my former colleagues. At least now they know where the finish line is, however long it may take,” a woman who gave her name as Ling, 47, told Reuters as she fought back tears outside the court. She said she had been waiting since Friday and regularly visits her former colleagues in prison.
“As for Mr Lai, he knew exactly what path he was choosing. I think it brings him some comfort that we can finally enter the main courtroom in the days ahead,” she added.
Lai, a British citizen, has been held in solitary confinement for more than 1,800 days. Two of his children have warned that his health has deteriorated, saying his death in prison would cause “irreparable damage to Hong Kong’s reputation”.
Lai pleaded not guilty to all charges.
A conviction on the collusion charge under national security laws results in a sentence ranging from three years in jail to life, depending on the offence’s nature and his role in it. The sedition charge under a separate, colonial-era law carries a maximum of two years’ imprisonment.
Three government-vetted judges wrote in their December verdict that Lai spearheaded the conspiracies and took issue with what they called his “constant invitation” to the United States to bring down the Chinese government with the excuse of helping Hong Kongers.
Six ex-Apple Daily senior executives and two activists involved in Lai’s case had entered guilty pleas, admitting that they had conspired with Lai and others to request foreign forces to impose sanctions, blockades or engage in other hostile activities.
A guilty plea usually can lead to a sentence reduction. Under the security law, a reduced penalty may be granted to those who report on the offence committed by others.
Lai has spent five years in custody and has become visibly thinner.
Mr Trump said after the verdict that he spoke to Chinese president Xi Jinping about Lai and “asked to consider his release.”
Sir Keir Starmer has said his government has made it a priority to secure Lai’s release. Sir Keir is due to visit China for talks with Mr Xi at the end of this month.
Additional reporting by agencies
