(Minghui.org) A Baoding City, Hebei Province resident was arrested for talking to people about her faith in Falun Gong. She is now facing indictment after her arrest was approved by the procuratorate.
Ms. Zhang Ximei was arrested around 1:00 p.m. on January 17, 2019 while talking to people on the street about Falun Gong, a spiritual discipline persecuted by the communist regime since 1999.
As Ms. Zhang refused to disclose her name and address, the police officers snatched her cellphone and called her mother. They claimed that they'd found a lost phone at a local market and wanted to return it to the owner. Ms. Zhang's mother was thus tricked into revealing the information needed by the police.
Zhang Ajun (no relation), deputy director of Jiannan Police Station, led four officers and broke into Ms. Zhang's home at 5:00 p.m. that afternoon. Without showing any IDs or search warrant, they confiscated Ms. Zhang's Falun Gong-related materials and left without providing a list of confiscated items.
Ms. Zhang's mother-in-law, in her 90s, and her daughter, who recently returned home from college for winter break, were terrified by the police raid. Her daughter and father were also interrogated separately and forced to sign interrogation records without being allowed to read them first.
In other cases concerning Falun Gong practitioners, police have been known to coerce family members into giving incriminating evidence against their loved one. Many family members who were forced to sign interrogation records later found out that their signatures were used as proof that they “agreed” to become prosecution witnesses.
Ms. Zhang was transferred to Qingyuan Detention Center on January 20. Her arrest was approved by the Jingxiu District Procuratorate on January 31.
Ms. Zhang used to suffer severe headache since she was a child. She tried many medications, but none of them worked. Her fate changed when she began to practice Falun Gong.
Her mother-in-law said of Ms. Zhang, “She was like a completely different person,” as she became more peaceful and calm after she picked up the practice.
“My mom always wants to give the best to others – not only to our relatives, but to everyone else who is suffering hardship.” her daughter said.
Ms. Zhang's family is now calling on the authorities to release her immediately.
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