(Minghui.org) A 47-year-old man in Wuhan City, Hubei Province, was sentenced to three and a half years on October 23, 2026, because he practices Falun Gong, a spiritual discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese Communist Party since July 1999.
Mr. Wang Changzheng was arrested on March 31, 2025, by officers Cheng Wangyang (badge number 036351) and Xia Qianqiao (badge number 036640) from the Jinyinhu Police Station. They raided his home and put him in the Jinghe Lockup the next day.
After 15 days of administrative detention, Mr. Wang was transferred to the Jinghe Detention Center on April 16. One week later the Dongxihu District Police Department requested that he be issued a formal warrant. Prosecutor Wang Huixuan from the Dongxihu District Procuratorate approved the request on April 30 and had Mr. Wang transferred to the Hanyang District Detention Center in mid-July 2025. Prosecutor Luan Liping from the Hanyang District Procuratorate took over his case.
Luan returned the case to the police in August 2025, citing insufficient evidence. She deposed Mr. Wang at the procuratorate two months later and forwarded the case to the Hanyang District Court in November 2025.
Mr. Wang stood trial on April 24, 2026. Judge Zhu Ran, 36, only allowed two of Mr. Wang’s family members to attend the trial. His father-in-law also went to the courthouse but was barred from entering because he did not apply to attend the trial ahead of time but the other two family members did.
Mr. Wang’s lawyer requested that his handcuffs be removed but his request was denied. The lawyer cast doubt on the validity of the 15-day administrative detention given to his client, and judge Zhu asked him to “talk to the police.” She also interrupted the lawyer frequently.
Judge Zhu also tried to stop Mr. Wang when he read out aloud his defense statement. He still managed to read the entire statement.
The hearing began at 9:30 a.m. and concluded at 10:40 a.m. Mr. Wang was sentenced to three and a half years on October 23, 2026. His prison term is set to end on September 29, 2028.
Mr. Wang is his parents’ only child, and his arrest devastated his mother who is in her 70s. She became mentally unstable. She often wandered around searching for him and many times she couldn’t find her way home.
Prior to this persecution episode, Mr. Wang was repeatedly targeted for practicing Falun Gong in the past 27 years. He was expelled from the Wuhan City Police Academy while he was a student there. Additionally, he served an unknown term of forced labor and a 4.5-year prison term.
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