(Minghui.org) A Xi’an City, Shaanxi Province resident was recently sentenced to 4.5 years in prison for his faith in Falun Gong, a spiritual discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since 1999.
Mr. Song Zhi, a 47-year-old flight engineer, was arrested on September 28, 2019 and has since been held at the Xi’an City Detention Center.
During his hearing by the Yanta District Court on July 16, 2020, only two of the three prosecution witnesses appeared in court to accept cross examination, as the third was serving time in prison.
It was reported that judge Yang Lin requested instruction from the local intermediate court on the length for Mr. Song’s sentence, but she never received a response.
After the hearing, the two court-appointed lawyers visited Mr. Song only once in October and never visited him again. Eager to find out how he was doing, Mr. Song’s family hired a lawyer for him in April 2021. The lawyer went to the detention center and was allowed to talk to Mr. Song via a video chat.
The lawyer filed a formal request with judge Yang on June 18, urging her to acquit Mr. Song, given the lack of evidence to convict him.
Yang instead announced the 4.5-year sentence for Mr. Song on July 12, 2021, nearly a year after the hearing.
Perpetrators’ contact information:
Yang Lin (杨琳), judge of Yanta District Court: +86-29-8120813Zhang Huan (张欢), prosecutor of Yanta District Procuratorate: +86-15502905120, +86-29-85255579, ext. 8405, +86-29-85255579, ext. 8406Zhao Xiaolin (赵小林), secretary of Yanta District Political and Legal Affairs Committee: +86-15339025052Li Junfeng (李军锋), deputy secretary of Yanta District Political and Legal Affairs Committee: +86-13759990985Xiao Xiliang (肖西亮), head of Xi’an City Police Department: +86-29-85292421Tao (陶), officer of Xi’an City Police Department who arrested Mr. Song: +86-18681868604Yang (杨), officer of Xi’an City Police Department who arrested Mr. Song: +86-18165395167Xi’an City Detention Center: +86-29-85268258
(More perpetrators’ contact information is available in the original Chinese article.)
Related reports:
After Nine Arrests and Two Labor Camp Terms, Flight Engineer Faces Prison Time for His Faith
Persecution of Falun Gong Practitioners from Xi'an Aircraft Industry Company
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Category: Accounts of Persecution
