A six-year-long case of alleged witness tampering drew to a close yesterday when the Court of Final Appeal dismissed all allegations against the three accused - including a top lawyer and a barrister.
The five judges ruled unanimously in favour of lawyer Andrew Lam Ping-cheung, barrister Kevin Egan and Mandy Chui Man-si, saying not only were there 'critical evidential deficiencies', but the lower courts' rulings also 'lack logical and factual basis'.
The top court also ruled out a retrial.
The case stemmed from an alleged conspiracy between Egan, Lam, Chui and her lover Derek Wong Chong-kwong, former chairman of Semtech International Holdings, to use the media and the courts to pressure the Independent Commission Against Corruption into releasing Wong's secretary, Becky Wong Pui-see. Prosecutors had said their aim was to stop Becky Wong - who later joined the ICAC's witness protection programme - giving evidence against her boss in a market manipulation case.
Lam and Chui were convicted of a count of conspiring to pervert the course of justice at the original trial.
Lam appealed against his conviction last year, but the Court of Appeal upheld the District Court's ruling and increased his sentence from four years to six. In dismissing Lam's appeal, Mr Justice Geoffrey Ma Tao-li said Lam knew the witness was about to testify against his client Wong and thus orchestrated the habeas corpus application in an attempt to gain access to her, despite knowing she was not really in detention.
