(Minghui.org) A Haicheng City, Liaoning Province resident was sentenced to 3.5 years in prison for practicing Falun Gong, a spiritual and meditation discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since 1999.
Ms. Wang Xiuqin was arrested on September 24, 2018. The police confiscated her computer, printer, Falun Gong books, as well as her personal vehicle.
It was reported that officers from Liaoyang County Domestic Security Division monitored Ms. Wang for eight months before arresting her.
The police put Ms. Wang on criminal detention at Liaoyang Detention Center on September 25. Her arrest was approved by Liaoyang County Procuratorate on October 29.
Ms. Wang's sister and brother-in-law asked their son Zhang Xin, who is a lawyer, to represent her. The nephew, who, like his parents, has been heavily influenced by the hateful propaganda spread by the communist regime against Falun Gong, decided to plead guilty on his aunt's behalf.
Ms. Wang, however, was determined to prove her innocence in practicing Falun Gong. The nephew then used his connections to secure court approval to represent Ms. Wang without her consent.
Ms. Wang's daughter turned to some local Falun Gong practitioners, who helped hire a lawyer who agreed to enter a not guilty plea for Ms. Wang.
When Ms. Wang appeared in Liaoyang County Court on March 5, 2019, her nephew became very angry upon seeing the lawyer hired by her daughter and fellow practitioners. He and his parents pressured his cousin to dismiss the lawyer, despite the fact that Ms. Wang insisted on keeping that lawyer.
With her desired lawyer dismissed, Ms. Wang testified in her own defense, but she was frequently disrupted by her nephew.
Judge Gao Xiaoguang sentenced Ms. Wang to 3.5 years in prison with a 10,000-yuan fine on May 16, 2019.
Ms. Wang has appealed to Liaoyang City Intermediate Court against the verdict.