(Minghui.org) Mr. Li Dayao, a 66-year-old Falun Gong practitioner from Jinzhou City, Hubei Province, was arrested in September 2017. He was sentenced to four-and-a-half years in prison on May 4, 2018, and fined 10,000 yuan. He filed an appeal, which was turned down. Mr. Li was transferred to Fanjiatai Prison on September 5, 2018.
A large contingent of police officers from the Jianli County Domestic Security Division, the 610 Office, and the county police department went to the homes of Mr. Li Dayao, Mr. Li Lecheng, Mr. Zhu Chunxin, Mr. He Cheng, and Mr. Wang Shengui on September 20, 2017. The officers ransacked the homes and took the practitioners to the police station. Many personal belonging, including computers, were confiscated.
Mr. Li Dayao and Mr. Zhu Chunxin Imprisoned
Mr. Li Dayao and Mr. Zhu Chunxin were taken to the Zengmiao Detention Center in Hongcheng Township. Their families and friends demanded their release several times, but the police gave them the runaround and refused to meet with the families.
Mr. Li and Mr. Zhu were indicted by the Jianli County Procuratorate. They were tried on April 9, 2018. Their families were not notified. Mr. Zhu was sentenced to one year in prison.
Mr. Li appealed. His family hired an attorney from out of town to represent him. The attorney send a letter of appeal to the Jianli County Court on May 10. The family also mailed a copy to the Jinzhou Intermediate Court. The Court did not respond.
The attorney called the appeals court on July 18, 2018, to have the trial postponed but without success.
The family hired Attorney Cheng Hai from Beijing on July 22, 2018. Mr. Cheng's license had been revoked for defending Falun Gong practitioners. He came to help Mr. Li as a friend and asked the court to hold the trial. The court refused. The lawyer wrote to the court and the family submitted their request to judge Zhang Xinyuan.
Lawyer Cheng Hai then met with the judge on August 15 to request an open trial. However, the judge denied his request. The Intermediate Court upheld the original sentence on August 21, 2018.
The family visited Mr. Li in the detention center on September 4, 2018. Mr. Li was emaciated. The family tried to take his photo but the guards stopped them and threatened to end the visit.
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