Weifang City: Police Arrest Three More Practitioners and Attempt to Fabricate Evidence against Mr. Li Deshan

(Minghui.org) Just a month after the arrest of 10 local Falun Gong practitioners in April 2014, police from Weifang City, Shandong Province, arrested three more local practitioners in May. The two waves of arrests were planned and carried out by local 610 Office authorities and police officers in an attempt to fabricate evidence against Mr. Li Deshan, who was arrested in August 2013 for installing satellite dishes.

After failed attempts to get information about Mr. Li from the 10 practitioners arrested in April 2014, police from Weifang City arrested Ms. Qin Xue, Mr. Qin Yongjie, and Ms. Chen Ruiyun on May 15, 2014. The police interrogated and threatened the three practitioners, trying to get them give false testimony in court against Mr. Li.

Mr. Li Deshan was arrested in August 2013 for installing satellite dishes that receive programming from New Tang Dynasty Television, a US-based TV network that broadcasts uncensored news exposing the Communist regime's human rights abuses. Refusing to cooperate with the police, Mr. Li has been illegally detained ever since.

Large Scale Arrest in April 2014

Since Mr. Li's arrest in August 2013, the local authorities have been trying to gather more "evidence" to charge him for installing satellite dishes, which is not illegal even in China. After following and tracking many practitioners in the region for months, the local police arrested 10 practitioners on April 4, 2014. Arrest warrants have been issued for six of them.

More than 100 police officers from Weifang City 610 Office, Gaomi City 610 Office, Weifang City Police Department Domestic Security Division, Gaomi City Police Department Domestic Security Division, and Dongguan, Xiguan, Nanguan, Beiguan, and Xiazhuang police stations in Gaomi City carried out the arrests.

Those arrested were: Ms. Chen Guangxia and Mr. Zhang Menglei from Qingdao City; Ms. Jing Xiuling, Mr. Shan Yicheng, Mr. Du Qihai, Mr. Liu Wenming, Mr. Wang Zhili, Mr. Qin Songfa and his wife Ms. Xu Xiuzheng, their niece Ms. Xu Li, and their daughter Ms. Qin Shaoying from Gaomi City. The police ransacked their homes and confiscated satellite dishes, computers, printers, and 10,600 yuan.

Mr. Qin Songfa, his wife Ms. Xu Xiuzhen, and many others were interrogated. They were handcuffed and shackled. The police kicked practitioners' legs, resulting in deep bruises. Some practitioners were deprived of sleep, denied bathroom use, and threatened. The police forced female practitioners to take their tops off and then yelled obscenities at them. However, the practitioners refused to reveal any information or provide testimony in court against Mr. Li.

Arrest warrants were issued on May 12, 2014, for Ms. Jing Xiuling, Ms. Chen Guangxia, Mr. Shan Yicheng, Mr. Zhang Menglei, Mr. Du Qihai, and Mr. Liu Wenming, who are now facing trial.

Mr. Li Arrested for Installing Satellite Dishes

Mr. Li Deshan and Mr. Rong Gang from Gaomi City and Mr. Qin Xue from Weifang City were arrested in August 2013. Their homes were ransacked and personal belongings such as computers, printers, picture frames, satellite dishes, and Falun Dafa books were confiscated. All contacts stored in their cellphones and recently contacted numbers were obtained by the police.

These practitioners had been under surveillance long before their arrests. Practitioners from Qingdao, Gaomi, and Weifang City were monitored and their phones were tapped. However, the police waited six months to a year to make the arrests.

Ms. Qin Xue, Mr. Li Deshan, and Mr. Rong Gang were interrogated and asked to reveal how they installed the satellite dishes and information about other local practitioners and through whom they met them. The police threatened to torture them if they didn't cooperate.

The police found an uninstalled satellite dish in Mr. Li's home and are looking to collect more evidence to convict Mr. Li.

Key Parties Involved in the Persecution of These Practitioners:

Sun Lizhong (孙立忠), Gaomi City Domestic Security Division: [phone] (cell)Yan Xijun (闫希军), director of Weifang City Police Department: [phone] (cell)Wang Ruoshui (王若水), director of Domestic Security Division: [phone] (cell)Liu Chongdao (刘崇道), 610 Office Command Center: [phone] (cell)Li Jun (李军), Weifang City Domestic Security Division: [phone] (cell)Li Zhinian (李志念), director of Weifang City Detention Center: [phone] (office), [phone] (cell)Zeng Zhaoliang (曾照亮), director of Weifang City 610 Office: [phone] (office), [phone] (cell)Qi Yanwei (齐延伟), deputy director of Weifang City 610 Office: [phone] (cell)