Since the persecution of Falun Gong by Jiang's regime started on July 20, 1999, ten events have been classified as the so-called "10 key cases." Among one of them is the 18 Falun Dafa practitioners who were illegally sentenced in Bozhou City, Anhui Province. At that time, to take credits for his achievements, Deputy Director Ma in Bozhou City Police Department and Director Yao in "610 Office," set up a special team to scheme the so-called "key cases".

This incident occurred two years ago. However, most of the practitioners involved are still in prison. The incident led to the death of one practitioner and a 15-year-old girl was tortured and sentenced to 3 years. Police involved in the torture include Shi Xinmin, Yuan Lei, Wu Xianbin, Wang Jiushan and You Yulong.

During April and May 2002, 18 practitioners were abducted one after another in Bozhou City. Their homes were ransacked and much of their personal property was confiscated by the police. On the morning of March 20, 2002, practitioner Zhao Shurong went outside to take care of some matters. Song Baowei and Wei Jianquan from Nanshi District Political and Judiciary Committee took Zhao's cell phone and pushed her into the police car, handcuffed her for more than 4 hours in Qiaoling Police Station, then forced her into illegal detainment at Bozhou City Detention Center.

In April 2002, staff from "610 Office">610 Office" and police from Guantang Police Station broke into and ransacked the home of practitioner Yang Jinying. They took her to the police station against her will to extort a confession. The police threatened, abused, and compelled her to turn in other practitioners. Li Yingjie, a 15-year-old female student was kidnapped, detained and beaten many time by "610" offices of Bozhou City Political and Judiciary Committee, Division of State Security and Tangling Police Station in 2001. On June 16, 2001, she was forced into imprisonment at Hefei City Women's Labor Camp for brainwashing. As a result, she can not go home or attend school.

Practitioner Shi Leimin's home was also ransacked. The police looted over 4000 yuan (1), a bank deposit book with a balance of 13,000 yuan and another with a balance of 80,000 yuan. Other items stolen were a gold necklace, gold earrings, TV and furniture. In September 2002, policeman Wang Jiushan tracked Shi Leimin down to have her reveal the password for her deposit books.

At 9 a.m. on July 2, 2002, Falun Dafa practitioner Jia Yanhua was working in her office. Huang Weiguo and Wang Jiushan from Qiaocheng District Police Department and two men rushed into Jia Yanhua's office and forced her into Longhua Hotel. They brutally interrogated her and her family for 6 days and 5 nights. When the police were ransacking her home, they snatched a deposit book with a balance totaling 100,000 yuan. When she was held in another place on July 7, the police seized 45,000 yuan from her deposit account.

The practitioners who were abducted are Mr. Wang Jianjun, Mr. Shi Leimin, Mr.Chen Shaohua, Mr. Wang Yusheng, Mr. Li Hailiang, Mr. Wang Manyi, Mr. Kan Shaocheng, Ms. Jia Yuanhua, Ms. Guo Jinglan, Ms. Zhao Shurong, Ms. Gao Hongying, Ms. Li Dali, Ms. Zhao Ying, Ms. Ma Yuxia, Ms. Yang Jinying (persecuted to death), Li Hailiang,Ms. Shi Cuiyun, Ms. Cui Hui, and Miss Li Yingzhe (15 years old). All were law-abiding citizens. Jia Yanhua was the director of a foreign capital office in Bozhou City; Guo Jinglan was working in Hefei City and implicated for being a native of Bozhou City; Chen Shaohua worked in the railway station; Ma Yuxia was working in a traditional Chinese medicine market in Bozhou City; Wang Jianjun was engaged in the business of medical supplies; Shi Leimin was self-employed; Yang Jinying and Li Hailiang were peasants.

To achieve their goal of persecution, the lawless personnel detained most of the Falun Dafa practitioners from other places to isolate them with local practitioners. Among them, Jia Yanhua was detained in Luyi Detention Center in Henan Province; Shi Cuiyun, Wang Jianjun and Chen Shaohua were detained in Mengcheng City Detention Center in Anhui Province; Guo Jinglan was detained in Taihe County Detention Center in Anhui Province; Li Dali and Zhao Ying were detained in Lixin County in Anhui Province; Shi Leimin, Ma Yuxia, and Wang Yusheng were detained in Woyang County Detention Center in Anhui Province.

To get the confessions they wanted, the police tortured and beat up practitioners one by one, even an elderly practitioner and a 15-year-old girl. They deprived Shi Cuiyun of sleep for 3 days and hung her up with handcuffs. They beat her leg with a wooden mallet until her ankle was swollen. They used a TV remote control to hit her face and twisted it in her ears. As a result, her ears were purple and festered.

The police deprived Li Yingzhe of sleep and forced her to stand for forty-eight hours at the Began Police Station. Zhu Xiaoyan, Shi Xinmin and Yuanlei took her to the fifth floor of the police department and later to Haijing Hotel. She was humiliated, and tortured physically and mentally. The police handcuffed her, and covered her head with her jacket. She was nearly suffocated, and close to vomiting. Shi Xinmin and Li Gang threatened her, "If you do not confess, we will pour gasoline on you and claim that a Falun Gong practitioner set themselves on fire." Li Gang took a bottle downstairs to fill with gasoline from their car. Then, he hit her head with the bottle. Shi Xinmin and Li Gang also pushed her down to the ground and forced liquor down her throat. Shi Xinmin, Yuanlei and Li Gang threatened to shoot her. Yuan Lei pointed the gun at her.

Cui Hui was handcuffed to a clothes-rack for one night. She wasn't allowed to go to the restroom. She was tortured for 3 successive days. Ma Yuxia, a 56-year-old elderly woman was tortured for 8 days. The police boiled water for her and put unknown medicine inside, forcing her to drink it. Consequently, she became thirsty, and had a bitter taste in her mouth. She had extreme pain in her throat, a bloated stomach, and other symptoms.

Yang Jinying was taken away by the police in April 2002. She was tortured to paralysis and suffered from incontinence. Later, she was carried out on a stretcher when she was in extreme danger. Several days later, she died.

Zhao Shurong was brutally tortured for 3 days and nights by 4 to 5 policemen. During the night, Yuan Lei, Wu Xianbin, Shi Xinmin, and Hu turned the heat off and went to sleep under their heavy blankets. Meanwhile, they hung Zhao Shurong, suspended by her handcuffed hands above her head. Li Gang hit her head violently. Zhao was hung from 9 p.m. to 8 a.m. the next day. After having breakfast, Yuan Lei and Li Gang handcuffed both her hands onto the window frame such that her feet swung two feet off the ground. She trembled all over, and was not taken down until she was near coma. Since her weigh from the hanging was firmly held by the handcuffs, they couldn't open them. They violently pulled her hands to get them out of the handcuffs. As a result, her hands were paralyzed for 3 months.

Several policemen from the "610"offices handcuffed Gao Hongying to the chair. She was force-fed psychotropic drugs. She became thirsty and dizzy. Shi Xinmin and Yuan Lei forced her to squat for a long time. She could no longer tolerate and sat on the ground. Yuan Lei dragged her up by seizing her hair. Then he beat her mouth, handcuffed her hands to her back, and kicked her elbows and back. She was trembling in extreme pain. They slapped her over 300 times until they got tired. The brutal beating lasted for 72 hours.

To force Jian Yanhua to give in, they illegally detained her husband and daughter. They threatened her daughter and interrogated her husband in every possible way. Her daughter was only a young girl. She was trembling and crying in fear the whole time. The police also threatened to deny her the right to take the university entrance examination. After she was released, the young girl cried the entire day without eating and drinking. She was often awakened by nightmares during the night.

Shi Leimin was cuffed and kicked by the police. The police pushed him onto the ground. They stamped his chest and back with their feet, knocked him with their knees, and hit him with their fists. As a result, he developed many internal injuries. He was tortured this way for 7 to 8 days. During this time, he became unconscious from the pain many times. He was mentally and physically devastated to the extreme. His injuries have not recovered even now. Standing 1.8 meters tall, his body weight was 91 kg before the illegal detention and was reduced to 45 kg. Once, Shi Xinmin said in front of many policemen, "If we wanted to kill you, we would pour gasoline on you and burn you. Then, we will claim that Falun Gong practitioners set themselves on fire again. Anyways, nobody knows the real situation. What we said would be regarded as truth.

The police targeted Guo Jinglan, an elderly volunteer from Hefei City. They tortured her very cruelly. For 11 days and nights, she was tortured to near death. The thugs coerced her to "confess", threatening further beatings, abuse and humiliation if she refused. Her face and body were completely covered with injuries. She could not chew anything. The thugs handcuffed her hands and hung her to the window. As a result, she could not move her left hand for several months and is still numb. However, the elderly practitioner had been steadfast without giving in. The police handcuffed her right hand and pulled her left hand to force her fingerprint on a prepared statement.

From September 8-9, 2003, the Qiaocheng District Court in Bozhou City put the 18 Falun Dafa practitioners on a secret trial. During the two days in session, the evidence from the public prosecutor was only read once. All the practitioners were only allowed to respond in yes or no to all the questions. Otherwise, the police in court would immediately drag them out if they spoke more.

The practitioners at the secret trial were unhappy with the unfair treatment. They asked to make a court statement that was ignored by the judge. Later, the 18 practitioners were illegally sentenced. Among them are Shi Leimin and Wang Jianjun, sentenced to 10 years; Guo Jinglan and Wang Yusheng, sentenced to 8 years; Chen Shaohua and Ma Yuxia, sentenced to 7 years; Jia Yanhua, Li Dali, and Shi Cuiyun sentenced to 5 years; Gao Hongying, Li Hailiang and Zhao Shurong, sentenced to 4 years; Cui Hui, Li Yingzhe, and Yang Jinying (persecuted to death), sentenced to 3 years.

The practitioners were sent to different prisons. All authorities involved in the case were rewarded. The Anhui Province authority awarded the police units involved the highest rewards. State Security Ministry based in Beijing also awarded units involved with high rewards. Individual police from both units were also specially recognized for their "effectiveness".

Guo Jinglan was sent to Suzhou Prison later. Her blood pressure once rose to 230 showing symptoms of heart disease. She was bailed out due to her medical condition later. Li Yingzhe was sent to Anhui Province Women's Prison. Later, her sentence was continued outside of prison. Li Yingzhe's mother became remorseful for practicing Falun Gong under forced brainwashing. The local office monitored her after they let her home. She had cooperated with the "610 Office" to send Li Yingzhe to a mental hospital. Li Yingzhe was hit with an electric baton. She was forced to write the so-called "Three statements" while in an unsober condition. The remaining 15 Falun Dafa practitioners are still detained in different jails.

(1) "Yuan" is the Chinese currency; 500 yuan is equal to the average monthly income of an urban worker in China.