Hong Kong court quashes fraud conviction of ex-media mogul Jimmy Lai

Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai, centre, who founded local newspaper Apple Daily (Vincent Yu/AP)

A Hong Kong appellate court on Thursday quashed fraud convictions against one-time media magnate Jimmy Lai, a rare victory in the prominent activist’s legal battles.

Lai, 78, an outspoken critic of China’s ruling Communist Party who founded the now-defunct Apple Daily, will stay in prison because he was sentenced to 20 years weeks ago after being convicted in another case brought under a China-imposed national security law.