Hong Kong, Dec 9 (IANS): Hong Kong media mogul Jimmy Lai and two others were on Thursday convicted for their involvement in an illegal assembly in Victoria Park last year.

According to a BBC report, Lai, Gwyneth Ho and Chow Hang Tung were convicted for "inciting and taking part" in the unlawful assembly despite a ban last June to commemorate the 1989 crackdown at Beijing's Tiananmen Square.

The 73-year-old Lai and Ho, a former journalist turned opposition politician, are already in jail. Chow is a former lawyer and the vice chairwoman of the now-defunct Hong Kong Alliance -- the group that organised the vigil every year.

Lai and Chow were charged with unlawful incitement of others to participate in an unauthorized assembly without lawful authority or reasonable excuse.

Chow and Ho were charged with knowingly participating in the banned assembly at that time, along with other unidentified persons.

They will be sentenced on December 13, and face a maximum of five years in prison.

The unauthorized assembly case involves a total of 26 defendants, including Lai, Lee Cheuk-yan, Albert Ho Chun-yan and Joshua Wong.

So far 21 people have pleaded guilty or been sentenced.

Nathan Law and Sunny Cheung, who have absconded from Hong Kong, were also involved in the case.

The court has issued arrest warrants for them.