The Court of Second Instance (TSI) has reduced the prison sentences of several defendants in a high-profile corruption case, including the former Public Works Bureau director, Jaime Carion.
The TSI ruling comes after the Court of Final Appeal (TUI) determined the TSI should “draw the necessary legal consequences” from its previous decision to acquit several defendants of the charge of “association or secret society.”
Carion, who had been sentenced in absentia to 20 years in prison, now faces a reduced sentence of 16 years.
The TSI has also acquitted Carion, as well as Lei Wai Cheng, Kuong Wan Si, Man Lai Chung, and Li Han, of the crime of “association or secret society.”
The sentence reductions and acquittals stem from the TSI’s decision in November 2023 to acquit several other defendants, including the former director of the Macau Land, Public Works, and Transport Bureau (DSSOPT), Li Canfeng.
Li Canfeng’s sentence was reduced from 24 to 17 years in prison.
According to the TSI’s supplementary judgment, the “crime of association or secret society” is a crime committed with the participation of the group, and the acquittal decision related to other defendants was not based on “strictly personal reasons” particular to those defendants.
As a result, the acquittal and commutation decisions must benefit the remaining defendants in the same case who did not appeal.
In 2022, the Public Prosecutions Office accused Li Canfeng, Jaime Carion, and several businessmen of crimes including corruption, secret association, criminal association and money laundering.
Li Canfeng held the position of Public Works Bureau director between 2014 and 2019, and Jaime Carion retired in 2014. Victoria Chan
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