According to the local press, Judge Adriana Tse sentenced her to five years in prison for blackmail and three years for prevarication, with her having to serve one consecutive year.

Prosecutors argued that Rose made up the accusation in an attempt to extort £100,000 ($134,000) from the man, whose identity was withheld. Rose denied the charges throughout the trial and has consistently maintained that she was raped.

Rose had traveled to Hong Kong on January 31, 2024 after meeting the man while in Thailand a month earlier, according to court documents.

At the center of the prosecution’s case were WhatsApp messages exchanged between the couple in the hours and days after the alleged rape on February 1 in their apartment.

In a message sent the next morning, Rose wrote: “Are you upset that I didn’t want to have sex?”, to which the man replied: “No, of course not. I was impressed by your restraint.”

Later that day, Rose wrote: “You raped me last night, I didn’t want to have sex.”

He replied: “I’m so sorry, I was a little drunk and I misunderstood your signals, it’s no excuse and I know it doesn’t make things better.”

In a later exchange, Rose wrote, “You basically raped me.” The man replied, “That’s not what I like at all and I feel sick.”

The couple later exchanged messages about money. According to the written verdict released in March, the man agreed to reimburse Rose for her travel and accommodations.

In one message, Rose wrote: “Send me the correct amount you owe me for everything. Think about it. Think carefully.”

That day he transferred £5,000 and attempted to send another £5,000.

Rose later wrote: “You have given 10% of what I was owed. 100% of my soul is gone.”

In a later message, the man wrote: “But I don’t have 100,000, I have no way to pay you that.”

Rose reported the rape to police on February 3. The man was arrested and questioned before being released without charge. Rose was arrested the next day and later charged with blackmail and perverting the course of public justice.