(Minghui.org) Mr. Wang Zheng, a Falun Gong practitioner from Beijing, was taken to a brainwashing center after being detained for 31 days. His family is preparing to file criminal complaints against the responsible officials.

Three Falun Gong practitioners were tried by the Tongzhou District Court on November 30, 2016. More than 20 practitioners who planned to attend the trial were arrested. Mr. Wang was among them. He was detained and later taken to the Fentai District Brainwashing Center by officers from the Shiliuzhuang Police Station and 610 Office on December 31, 2016.

Mr. Wang's mother and lawyer went to the Shiliuzhuang Police Station to ask for his release on January 3, 2017. The deputy director, Guo Yongxin, kept the lawyer outside and talked with the mother. He said he was following orders given by the Tongzhou Police Department, and that Mr. Wang was detained because he had distributed Falun Gong informational materials.

The practitioner's mother informed police that detaining Mr. Wang was in violation of the law and that they intended to sue them. The police told them to go ahead.

Two representatives from the neighborhood association went to Mr. Wang's home on January 4. They told his mother to cook some porridge for him because he had been on a hunger strike.

Mr. Wang's lawyer wrote an opinion letter stating that Guo and officer Yang Wenzhong had violated the law by detaining Mr. Wang for over 24 hours, which constituted an illegal detention, and that the family planned to file criminal complaints with the Beijing City Procuratorate and the Fengtai District Procuratorate.

Mr. Wang's mother and lawyer went to the police station again on January 6 to visit him. The police denied the request and told them that they were following orders from the Fengtai District Domestic Security Division.

They next went to the Domestic Security Division and asked to see Mr. Wang. The police told them to wait outside while they discussed the matter. The family and the lawyer waited for over two hours without a response.

Finally, the Domestic Security Division arranged to have Guo to meet with them outside the door. Guo said that Mr. Wang was being held in a brainwashing center, but would not reveal the exact location.

The lawyer asked him to explain the nature of the brainwashing center and if there was any legal documentation that proved that the brainwashing center was legitimate. Guo did not answer, and said that he was just following orders.

The lawyer handed the opinion letter and related documentation to Guo. He also informed Guo in writing that he would file the criminal complaints with the Procuratorate, the court in Beijing, and the Fengtai District on January 9, asking them to investigate the culpability of Guo Yongxin and Yang Wenzhong in the illegal detention of Mr. Wang unless he was released within 24 hours.