(Minghui.org) An 82-year-old resident of Suzhou City, Jiangsu Province stood trial on December 14, 2020, for his faith in Falun Gong, a spiritual discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since 1999.

Mr. Wu Huaxin was arrested on January 7, 2020, for attending the hearing of two other Falun Gong practitioners, Ms. Xuan Xiaomei and Ms. Zhu Peiqin, at the Wujiang Court, after the bailiff found a Falun Gong keepsake on him during a security screening.

The police took Mr. Wu to the Songling Police Station, forced him into an interrogation chair and questioned where he got the Falun Gong keepsake. They ransacked his home and confiscated all of his Falun Gong-related materials, including books, calendars and DVDs. He was released on bail the next day.

In August, Mr. Wu was charged with “undermining law enforcement,” the standard pretext used by Chinese authorities to frame and imprison Falun Gong practitioners.

Mr. Wu was tried on December 14 by the same Wujiang Court where he was arrested. The judge refused to allow any of his family members, including his children, to attend his hearing.

His two lawyers entered a not guilty plea for him. They argued that the Falun Gong materials he owned were his legal possessions and that the prosecutor failed to demonstrate how the materials harmed anyone.

Mr. Wu also maintained that he didn’t violate any laws in practicing Falun Gong.

The prosecutor recommended a nine-month sentence and a 2,000-yuan fine. The judge adjourned the hearing without announcing a verdict.