The two Falun Gong practitioners were arrested before the Beijing Olympics. After eight months detention, they were sentenced eight and four years' imprisonment, respectively.
Mr. Feng Feng and Mr. Deng Tianyu Tortured and Illegally Sentenced
On March 14, 2009, Falun Gong practitioners Feng Feng and Deng Tianyu in Shashi District, Jingzhou City, Hubei Province, were illegally sentenced to eight and four years' imprisonment, respectively.
Mr. Feng was young and strong. Now his hair has turned gray and he is paralyzed from the waist down. Mr. Deng has completely lost the sight in his right eye. He can see little with his left eye. Mr. Feng also has limited vision in his left eye. Both of them were tortured until they could no longer take care of themselves.
The two men were arrested on July 5, 2008, right before the Beijing Olympics, by officers from the 1st Section of Shashi District Police Branch in Jingzhou City. They have been illegally detained in Shashi Detention Center ever since. On January 15, 2009, Shashi District Court heard the charge against them: "Using an illegal organization to break the law."
Feng and Deng's family members hired three human rights lawyers - Jiang Tianyong, Han Zhiguang, and Li Chunfu from Beijing - to defend their innocence with a convincing argument based on reason and evidence. However, the court called for an adjournment to "wait for a joint discussion."
On March 14, the lawyers received a copy of the "verdict," which was mailed to Beijing from Shashi on March 9. The family members heard of the court decisions on March 12 through a phone call from the detention center. Mr. Feng and Mr. Deng were sentenced to eight and four years' imprisonment, respectively.