Overview
- Lai’s total term was set at 20 years, with 18 years ordered to run consecutively to a prior five-year-nine-month fraud sentence.
- He was convicted in December 2025 on two counts of conspiring to collude with foreign forces and one count of seditious publication after a 156-day trial.
- Eight co-defendants, including six former Apple Daily executives and two activists, received prison terms ranging from six years and three months to ten years, with some pleading guilty and testifying for the prosecution.
- The British government pledged rapid further engagement and urged humanitarian release, while U.S. officials and rights groups condemned the sentence and the EU, Japan, Australia and Taiwan voiced concern.
- Lai remains in custody with 28 days to appeal, as his defense cited age and health concerns and prosecutors referenced a medical report stating his condition is stable.