Accomplice Witness Chen Zihao: Family Stalked, Fears Black Bloc Revenge After Release

The mitigation hearings kicked off on Monday for defendants in the Jimmy Lai case, including five accomplice witnesses who flipped to testify against the media tycoon. First up: Chen Zihao and Lee Yu-hin, both members of the so-called "Stand With Hong Kong Fight for Freedom" crew. These two carried out Lai's orders to lobby foreign governments for sanctions against Hong Kong—and their testimony became the smoking gun that sealed Lai's fate. Their lawyers are now banking on that cooperation to slash their sentences.

But here's what grabbed my attention: Chen didn't just testify against Jimmy Lai. He exposed the dirty dealings of Lai's right-hand man Mark Simon and team leader Finn Lau (aka "Lord of Scorched Earth"). And now his family is paying the price. They've been harassed, followed, intimidated—the whole playbook. Chen himself is terrified about what happens when he walks out of prison, and he's got no clue if he'll get any protection. This tells you everything you need to know: the ghosts of the black bloc riots are still out there, lurking in the shadows. These accomplice witnesses could easily become targets for vigilante "justice." Police need to wake up and consider real protection for these people.

Family Under Siege

Chen's lawyer laid it out in court: ever since Chen was arrested and charged in early 2021, his family has been stalked and verbally harassed nonstop. His parents got doxxed—phone numbers plastered online for anyone to see. Now they're getting calls from unknown sources and only dare answer WhatsApp calls.

Last August 16, Chen's family called the cops after spotting two suspicious men loitering outside their home. Police responded by stepping up patrols in the area. According to the defense, "people holding different political positions" have made hostile remarks about Chen for turning state's evidence.

No shock there. Chen has become public enemy number one for remnant black bloc elements and Jimmy Lai's fan club. Shortly after being charged, he agreed to become an accomplice witness and spilled the beans on the secret activities of Lai and Mark Simon. Most damning of all: he voluntarily revealed his clandestine Taipei meeting with Lai, where they plotted to secure foreign sanctions against China and Hong Kong to trigger a "China collapse scenario." That testimony became the cornerstone of Lai's conviction—naturally earning Chen some serious enemies.

Classic Black Bloc Playbook

The harassment tactics described by the defense came straight out of the 2019 riots' greatest hits. Anyone who dared oppose the rioters or call out their violence got brazenly doxxed, then bombarded with online abuse, threatening phone calls, and sometimes outright violent attacks—the infamous "private justice." Police officers and civil servants got the same vicious treatment. These people are still hiding in the shadows, and the intimidation Chen's family faces almost certainly comes from the same crew.

Chen's lawyer expressed serious concern about his client's safety after release. Chen fears he won't get adequate protection once he's back on the streets. If he relocates to the UK, the risk skyrockets. Some of the "Stand With Hong Kong Fight for Freedom" members he testified against are now living in exile there, making protection even more challenging.

Chen Zihao's family has been stalked and harassed since 2021 for his testimony against Jimmy Lai. He fears retaliation upon release—and moving to the UK could make things worse.

A political contact clued me in: if Chen Zihao and Lee Yu-hin face threats after release, they can request police protection. Under the Witness Protection Ordinance enacted in 2000, even after cases wrap up—regardless of conviction outcomes—the police Witness Protection Unit can continue safeguarding certain witnesses until the threat to their lives is eliminated.

Lee Yu-hin faces same threats. Black bloc remnants still lurk in the shadows, ready to strike.

If Chen and others receive such protection, they and their families could be housed in police "safe houses" to ensure their safety.

Other accomplice witnesses in similar cases share same fears. Take Andrew Chiu Ka-yin, one of the defendants in the "35+ subversion case." He was released early last November after pleading guilty and agreeing to testify. In a recent interview with pro-democracy media, he admitted that because he testified against Benny Tai and other ringleaders, he's been constantly looking over his shoulder since his release, terrified of retaliation. Despite the danger, he says he's staying in Hong Kong—no emigration plans.

The "Dying Jimmy Lai" Myth Gets KO'd

During today's mitigation hearing, I caught something else worth noting: the prosecution methodically demolished the "Save Jimmy Lai campaign's" fabricated claims about Lai being on death's door. Remember the rumors about his "dramatic weight loss"? The prosecution set the record straight: when Lai first entered prison in 2020, he weighed 80 kilograms. As of January this year? 79.2 kilograms—less than one kilogram lighter. After several years behind bars, he's still "Fat Lai."

Lai's children previously spread wild tales claiming their father's fingernails had turned green and fallen off, his teeth had rotted and dropped out—supposedly symptoms of a serious illness suggesting his days were numbered. The prosecution today directly refuted this nonsense, noting that while he mentioned toothaches and toenail infections last year, these were treated and resolved without complications. His heart condition has been consistently normal, and his hearing hasn't deteriorated.

In fact, even without the prosecution's detailed clarification, just looking at Jimmy Lai's appearance in court today provides living proof that completely destroys those cheap lies.

Lai Ting-yiu

What Say You?

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The most consequential national security trial yet to come is also the one with the most unanswered questions — and at the centre of it is a man who almost made it out.

Monday (Feb 23) was "Renri" (人日) — the seventh day of the Lunar New Year, meant to be a day of celebration for all people. But for the 12 defendants in the "35+ Subversion Case," there was nothing to celebrate. The Court of Appeal dismissed all their appeals against both conviction and sentencing in full. Unless they push it all the way to the Court of Final Appeal, this case is done. That brings two of the three major national security cases to a close — the other being the Jimmy Lai trial. What remains is the Joshua Wong case, expected to go to trial around mid-year. Like Lai's, it reaches into the highest levels of American politics, and it will almost certainly expose a trove of behind-the-scenes dealings that will shake Hong Kong to its core. The trial is close enough that the details don't need spelling out here. But one mystery absolutely does: Wong was once Washington's darling — so why did he never make it out, while his co-conspirator Nathan Law did? An investigative report by American journalists cracked open the story.

Wong's trial is the last big national security case standing — and the most explosive one yet. How did he never make it out?

Wong's role in the Occupy Central movement and the 2019 unrest needs no introduction. In June last year, while already serving a prison term at Stanley Prison on sedition charges, he was arrested again and charged under the Hong Kong National Security Law with conspiracy to collude with foreign forces to endanger national security. His second pre-trial review at the Magistrates' Court came on 21 November last year, with the next hearing set for 6 March; the full trial at the High Court is expected to begin around mid-year. This case carries weight every bit as significant as the Jimmy Lai trial — the spotlight it commands will be enormous.

The Charges Are Grave

The prosecution alleges that between July and November 2020, Wong — together with Nathan Law and others yet to be identified — conspired in Hong Kong to solicit foreign governments and institutions to impose sanctions against the Hong Kong SAR and the People's Republic of China, and to seriously obstruct the government in enacting and enforcing its laws and policies. The charges carry a potential sentence of life imprisonment. What exactly Wong and Law did, and which foreign officials were involved, the prosecution will lay out in full when the trial begins.

The public has long asked some uncomfortable questions. Did Joshua Wong ever consider fleeing before or after the National Security Law came into force at the end of June 2020? If so, why did it never happen? Did the US government try to help him get out? An investigative report by two American journalists answered part of the puzzle — and sources familiar with the matter, when contacted by Hong Kong media, broadly confirmed what it said.

Wong Begged Washington for Help

The night before the National Security Law took effect, Wong reached out through a senator's adviser to appeal directly to President Trump for help. At the same time, he sent an email to then-Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, explicitly asking to be helped to "travel to the United States to seek political asylum, by whatever means necessary". That email tells you everything. Wong knew exactly how dangerous his situation had become — and he was betting his future on American goodwill.

  

Around the same time, Wong arranged to meet two officials from the US Consulate General in Hong Kong at St. John's Building, directly across the street from the consulate. He made clear he wanted to walk in and seek refuge. He was turned away on the spot. When Pompeo saw the email, he consulted with his staff and arrived at the same conclusion: letting Wong through the consulate doors was simply not an option — Washington feared Beijing would retaliate by forcing the US consulate in Hong Kong to close entirely.

State Department officials went further, exploring a covert plan to smuggle Wong out of Hong Kong by sea — routing him through Taiwan or the Philippines before eventually reaching the United States. That option was killed too, on the grounds that any such attempt would very likely be intercepted by Chinese authorities, triggering a diplomatic crisis. When the accounting was done, American interests won out — and Joshua Wong was coldly abandoned.

By that point, Nathan Law had already made it out. Seizing Pompeo's visit to London, Law met the Secretary of State privately and raised the question of rescuing Wong one more time — and was once again turned away without sympathy. In September 2020, Wong was arrested on sedition charges and imprisoned two months later. Any remaining window for escape had sealed shut.

Law Moved Fast — and Made It

 

Nathan Law is named as a co-conspirator in the charges against Wong — meaning that if arrested, they face the same jeopardy. But Law proved far more calculating than Wong. Shortly before the National Security Law took effect, he quietly slipped away, eventually confirming his presence in the United Kingdom on 13 July 2020. He even staged a moment of wistful sentiment, declaring: "With this parting, I do not yet know when I shall return... May glory come soon!" — words that, in the circumstances, could not have sounded more hollow.

Same charges, same case — but Law ran, and Wong didn't. One man made it out clean. The other is still paying the price.

Joshua Wong — sharp-witted all his life — took one step too many in trusting the Americans, and that delay cost him everything. The US government, in the name of "national interest," discarded him without hesitation. As his trial approaches, the reality is this: placing any further faith in American support would be the last illusion he can afford.

Lai Ting-yiu