Hong Kong fugitive Anna Kwok’s dad guilty of trying to cash out HK$88,000 policy

Kwok Yin-sang, the father of Hong Kong activist Anna Kwok, was convicted in West Kowloon Court for attempting to access his daughter's insurance policy worth over HK$88,000. This makes him the first person found guilty of a non-sedition-related offense under Hong Kong's Safeguarding National Security Ordinance, enacted in 2024. He attempted to cash out the policy, purchased for his daughter when she was a toddler, despite knowing authorities had classified her as an absconder. Anna Kwok, executive director of the US-based Hong Kong Democracy Council, is wanted by national security police for allegedly colluding with foreign forces and has a HK$1 million bounty on her head. She is accused of instigating sanctions against Hong Kong and mainland China.

Hong Kong activist Anna Kwok's father, Kwok Yin-sang, was convicted of a national security crime on Thursday in Hong Kong. Authorities accused him of dealing with funds linked to his daughter, who is wanted as an "absconder" for her activism and currently resides in Washington D.C. Rights groups have condemned the conviction as an attempt to silence overseas activists by targeting their families. Kwok Yin-sang, 68, faces up to seven years in prison and will be sentenced on February 26th. Anna Kwok believes the government is intentionally causing pain to her family in an attempt to silence her.

Kwok Yin-sang, the father of pro-democracy activist Anna Kwok, was convicted in Hong Kong under the new Article 23 national security law. The 68-year-old was found guilty of attempting to handle funds from his daughter's insurance policy, totaling HK$88,609, after she became a wanted fugitive accused of colluding with foreign forces. Anna Kwok leads the Hong Kong Democracy Council in Washington and is wanted by Hong Kong police, who have offered a HK$1 million bounty for her arrest. Kwok Yin-sang's defense argued the law shouldn't apply to handling an old insurance policy, calling it prosecution based on family ties. His son was also arrested for the same crime and is currently out on bail. This case marks the first conviction under the homegrown national security law, drawing international criticism.