“We will use Lam Wing-kee’s story to boost the mass rally on the 28th,” Lai said in a WhatsApp message to Cheung shown in West Kowloon Court. “However, in order to make it a headline story, [we] must approach Lam for a telephone interview. Please contact Lam and make this happen. Thanks.”
![Lam Wing-kee in Taipei in 2020. The bookseller disappeared before later turning up in custody in mainland China. Photo: EPA-EFE](https://i0.wp.com/cdn.i-scmp.com/sites/default/files/d8/images/canvas/2024/01/19/3a3c7fac-8be8-44f9-8233-1fae2d8367fd_759f8213.jpg?ssl=1)
Cheung has agreed to testify for the prosecution against his former boss in exchange for a shorter sentence.
During proceedings, defence counsel Steven Kwan Man-wai, said Lai had difficulty keeping pace with the various documentary evidence displayed in court via a digital screen because he had an eye problem.
Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai told staff to run ‘pro-resistance’ stories: trial
Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai told staff to run ‘pro-resistance’ stories: trial
“His condition has deteriorated recently after an operation,” the lawyer said, adding that further surgery might follow.
Lai, 76, has denied two conspiracy charges of collusion with foreign forces under the Beijing-imposed national security law, and a third charge of conspiracy to print and distribute seditious publications under colonial-era legislation.
Hong Kong’s Jimmy Lai ‘told Apple Daily to promote resistance’ against government
Hong Kong’s Jimmy Lai ‘told Apple Daily to promote resistance’ against government
Prosecutors have alleged Lai was the mastermind of an anti-China conspiracy linked to Apple Daily, where he had complete control over its editorial policies.