The first case of "Hong Kong spies" under the UK's National Security Act, two defendants granted bail and will appear in court again in November
The widely publicized "Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office spy" case had a preliminary hearing on Friday morning (October 25th) local time in the UK. The court approved the two defendants to be released on bail under the original conditions, and they will appear in court again on November 22nd to plead their case. The case will be officially opened on February 10th next year. The two were charged with two crimes under the UK's National Security Law: "assisting foreign intelligence agencies" and "foreign interference". This case is the first prosecution case after the UK passed the new National Security Law last year and involves Hong Kong's economic and trade officials in London, so it affects the UK-China relationship.
Yuen Song-biao, administrative manager of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in London, dressed in a neat suit, entered the court accompanied by legal representatives, but did not respond to reporters' questions. The case was heard again at the Central Criminal Court in London. The second defendant in the case was 38-year-old British border law enforcement officer Wei Zhiliang. Deputy Director of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in London, Wong Hoi-ling, and Assistant Director, Wu Man-kwong, were present and sat in the public gallery after entering the court.
Prosecution: The case involves the National Security Law and has "special sensitivity"
The case was handled by Judge Bobbie Cheema Grubb. After the two defendants entered the court, they initially sat in the seats behind their lawyers as they did in the last hearing. Later, the court clerk asked them to sit in the prisoner's dock. After the court opened, the court clerk read out the two names. The two stood up in the prisoner's dock and raised their hands to confirm. After that, they did not speak during the entire trial, with a solemn look.
The prosecution mentioned in court that the case involved the UK National Security Law and therefore had "special sensitivity", reminding the public and the media to pay attention.
As seen today, Yuan Songbiao's legal team was replaced, and the case was handled by barrister Michael Hick. Public information shows that Michael Hick specializes in "serious fraud cases" and also prosecutes and defends general crimes.
The defendant's lawyer asked for more time to handle the case
Michael Hick reiterated in court many times that he was very eager to start the trial on the original date and was doing his best to catch up with the case procedure schedule. However, he said that since he had just taken over the case this month, he had to deal with a large amount of evidence and documents under tight time constraints, and it was difficult to catch up with the progress. He gave an example that the legal team had to deal with some audio files that needed to be converted and some untranslated information, and the case involved thousands of text messages, but the prosecution did not specify which messages were related to the case. He asked the prosecution to provide a more detailed case summary and a list of witnesses. British Queen's Counsel Mark Heywood, who represented Wei Zhiliang, also agreed that it was difficult to catch up with the progress.
The prosecution countered that the existing case summary was very clear, the evidence was very sufficient, and the communications between the defendants were listed in chronological order, and they did not think it was necessary to provide more information.
The defendant can be released on bail until the end of November to plead, and the trial will officially begin in February next year
The judge agreed with the prosecution's point of view and scheduled another plea at the Central Criminal Court on November 22. The official trial date of February 10, which was set at the last hearing, remains unchanged, but the venue has been changed from the original Kingston Crown Court in London to the Central Criminal Court, which is the same venue as this hearing.
According to the last hearing, the official trial will be a jury and is expected to last four to six weeks.
The court also discussed the bail conditions of the two defendants. The two defendants were eventually granted bail under the original conditions, including surrendering travel documents, not being allowed to leave the country, and complying with the curfew from 10 pm to 5 am, reporting to the police station every week, not contacting another defendant or witness, and informing the police which devices they use to access the Internet, not deleting conversation records, and the police can review the defendant's mobile phone messages at any time.
Judge: If you plead guilty, you should plead guilty as soon as possible
The judge finally reminded the two defendants to prepare for the trial with their lawyers; and warned them that they must comply with the bail conditions and attend the next hearing on time. She also said that if the defendants plan to plead guilty, the sooner they decide, the better.
The two were charged with two crimes under the UK National Security Law, namely "assisting foreign intelligence agencies" and "foreign interference", each of which carries a maximum sentence of 14 years in prison. This case is the first prosecution case after the UK passed the latest National Security Law last year.
The indictment data pointed out that the two defendants were suspected of agreeing to collect intelligence, conduct surveillance and fraud, or provide substantial assistance to foreign intelligence agencies between December last year and May this year. The two were also suspected of attempting to forcibly break into a British residence on May 1 this year, which may constitute interference.
As for the original third defendant in the same case, Matthew Trickett, a former member of the British Royal Marines, was found dead in the park at the end of May this year, and his prosecution was terminated earlier. The Thames Valley Police said earlier that the cause of his death was "not suspicious".
In addition to attracting the attention of Hong Kong people overseas, the case also affected Sino-British relations. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin criticized the British side for "maliciously slandering China" through so-called espionage activities at the end of May, and urged the British side to stop "anti-China political manipulation."