(Minghui.org) Mr. Bao Wenju, a Falun Gong practitioner and co-owner of a deli food store, was illegally arrested on October 18, 2013 by the local police. He was tortured both in a brainwashing center and later, at a detention center. Without informing his family, the police transferred Mr. Bao from the detention center, but they refused to tell his family where they took him. His family is currently suing several 610 Office personnel and police officers who have taken part in persecuting Mr. Bao.

Mr. Bao Wenju and His Niece Arrested and Tortured

Mr. Bao and his niece Ms. Ao Cuicui jointly own a deli food store in Chuanying District of Jilin City. On the morning of October 18, 2013, they planned a business trip. Mr. Bao was arrested by police as soon as he stepped out of the store. When Ms. Ao came out and did not see her uncle, she started to call him but was immediately arrested by plainclothes police waiting nearby and stuffed into a car. One of the police was identified as Tang Zheming.

Mr. Bao and Ms. Ao were taken to the Zhihe Police Station in Chuanying District. Officers from the Zhihe Police Station twice ransacked Mr. Bao's home without any search warrants and took all of his Falun Gong books, two satellite dishes, satellite receivers, all the tools for installing satellite dishes, a battery-operated vehicle, over ten thousand yuan in cash and other personal items. The police also removed the satellite dish from Mr. Bao's home. None of the items, except the cash, have been returned, despite repeated requests from Mr. Bao's family.

Ms. Ao was illegally interrogated after she was taken to the police station. Each time her answer did not satisfy the police, they tightened handcuffs until they cut into her wrists, causing excruciating pain. She was then subjected to a torture called the tiger bench. She was transferred to the Jilin City Detention Center the next morning, where she was detained for ten days.

Mr. Bao was taken to the Zhihe Police Station and interrogated before he was transferred to the Shahezi Brainwashing Center in Jilin City. He was tortured while being interrogated in the brainwashing center. In order to intimidate him, more than ten forms of tortures were shown to Mr. Bao: mustard oil, hot pepper spray, syringes, wires, picks, etc. One particular form of torture involved handcuffing his hands behind his back, with both feet chained. The police put a towel over Mr. Bao's head, tightened it and pulled his head back. His mouth was taped and he could only breathe through his nose. The police then lit cigarettes and inserted them into his nostrils. They pushed the cigarette butts into his nostrils after the cigarettes were burned. He was in extreme pain with tears streaming down. The police then slapped him with gloves on (slapping with a gloved hand causes extreme pain while leaving no trace of the blow).

Mr. Bao also suffered another torture: he was first choked, then forced to smell mustard oil. The police then poured mustard oil into his nostrils, causing extreme pain. Mr. Bao was detained in the brainwashing center for twelve days before being transferred to Jilin Detention Center. He was detained there for more than forty days before his family learned of his whereabouts.

Police Obstruct Lawyer from Meeting with Client; Mr. Bao's Family Files Accusation Against Perpetrators

Mr. Bao's family hired a lawyer to defend Mr. Bao. The lawyer went to the Jilin Detention Center on November 7 to meet with him, but was blocked by the detention center. The lawyer tried again to meet with his client on November 20, but was told by the detention center that the police had forbidden Mr. Bao from meeting with his lawyer.

On the morning of November 21, the lawyer went to the Jilin City Police Department to request a meeting with Mr. Bao. He told them sternly that it is illegal to prevent a lawyer from meeting with his client. The City Police Department pushed the responsibility onto the Chuanying District Police Department. The lawyer then went to the Chuanying District Police Department. Knowing that they were in the wrong, officer Wang Jinghai gave the excuse that they had made a mistake in filing the paperwork, and approved the meeting. Finally, the lawyer was able to meet with Mr. Bao that afternoon.

After examining the details of the case, the lawyer concluded that none of Mr. Bao's actions constituted a crime, and that he should be released immediately. He asserted that it is a violation of the Chinese Constitution and a crime to arrest and torture Mr. Bao just because he practices Falun Gong and believes in the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance.

In order to safeguard their legitimate rights and interests, to defend the Constitution and the legal authority, Mr. Bao's family filed a letter of accusation against several government agencies and personnel:

Accused persons:

Bai Yan, head of the Jilin City Politics and Law Committee and the 610 Office
Li Zhichun, head of the Jilin Domestic Security Division: +86-432-62409346
Wang Jinghai, Jilin City Chuanying Police Department: +86-13704404321
Gao Xin, Jilin City Chuanying Police Department
Guan Xiaoqun, Zhihe Police Station: +86-13904323888
Tang Zheming, Zhihe Police Station: +86-13944202988

The above are responsible for illegally detaining Mr. Bao and for violating China's Criminal Law. They are suspected of having committed the crimes of illegal arrest, illegal intrusion into a citizen's residence, illegal searches, robbery, unlawful deprivation of the right to practice religion, illegal detention, and illegal torture. The family further stated that the accused persons' flagrant violation of the Constitution should be prosecuted by the law.

Mr. Bao Transferred by Police, Family Does Not Know His Whereabouts

On November 26, 2013, Ms. Ao Cuicui went to the Jilin City Detention Center to deliver some items for Mr. Bao, but was told that he was no longer there. When Ms. Ao asked where he was, the detention center officer told her to check with the police station that had arrested Mr. Bao.

Ms. Ao rushed to the Zhihe Police Station and asked where her uncle was. The police told her to go to the Chuanying Police Department. When Ms. Ao tried to reason with them, they threatened to arrest her.

Worried about her uncle's safety, Ms. Ao rushed to the Chuanying Police Department, only to be told that Gao Xin, the officer responsible for persecuting Mr. Bao, was not there.