Ex-Hong Kong leader gets 20 months in jail for misconduct

HONG KONG: A former leader of Hong Kong was sentenced Wednesday to 20 months in prison for misconduct after failing to disclose plans to rent a luxury apartment for his retirement from a businessman applying for a broadcasting license.

It was a stunning downfall for Donald Tsang, 72, who served as Hong Kong’s leader, or chief executive, from 2005 to 2012.

He becomes the highest-ranking current or former



official sent to prison for wrongdoing in the Asian financial hub, which prides itself on a reputation for clean governance.

“Never in my judicial career have I seen a man fallen from such a height,” Justice Andrew Chan said as he handed down the sentence in Hong Kong’s High Court. “However, it is not in dispute that the defendant has dedicated himself to public service for the past 40 years.”