A former member of a Hong Kong boyband will spend two years in jail after a court found him guilty of sedition.

Judge Ernest Lin said Thursday that Tommy Yuen, formerly of the Cantopop boyband "E-Kids," caused "harm to society" by harnessing his popularity to spread anti-government messages.

In his ruling, the judge slammed Yuen for "fanning the flames" of public discontent with his social media posts, which he also used for self-promotion and profit.

Yuen's posts included messages celebrating the death of a police officer and lampooning a magistrate who handled national security cases, the judge said.

Yuen was also accused of working with his wife to invent the story of a 19-year-old female protester facing rioting charges to gain sympathy and solicit donations.

Yurn became an outspoken supporter of the Chinese city's democracy protests in 2019, before Beijing cracked down on the movement and imposed a national security law.

Yuen, 43, was arrested in February 2022 and has been remanded in custody since. He pleaded guilty last month.

Since 2020, more than 30 people have been charged with sedition, many of whom were not high-profile public figures.

WITH AFP