(Minghui.org) It was recently learned that two Huaihua City, Hunan Province, residents were sentenced to prison for practicing Falun Gong, a spiritual discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) since July 1999.

Mr. Jiang Zonghui, in his 70s, was sentenced to seven years and fined 5,000 yuan. Mr. Zhong Liancong was sentenced to three years and fined 2,000 yuan.

Mr. Jiang was a Huaihua City Post Office official but was fired for practicing Falun Gong. After his latest sentencing, the local Hecheng District Social Security Office ordered him to reimburse the pension money he received since his arrest in August 2022. His family complied with the order.

Group Arrest

Both Mr. Jiang and Mr. Zhong were arrested on August 29, 2022. At least sixteen other local Falun Gong practitioners were arrested that day.

The Huaihua City Police Department, the Hecheng District Police Department, the Huaitie Police Branch, and the Hutian Police Station carried out the group arrests. They dispatched up to 20 officers to raid each practitioner’s home.

Mr. Jiang was seized by a group of plainclothes officers from the Hutian Police Station, as soon as he returned to his rental place and opened the door. The police confiscated his copy paper and computer. It’s unclear where Mr. Zhong was arrested.

While the other practitioners were soon released, Mr. Jiang and Mr. Zhong were given criminal detention and taken to the Huaihua City Detention Center. Mr. Zhong was issued a formal arrest warrant in mid-September 2022. There have been no other updates on the two practitioners’ case status since then.

An insider recently told their loved ones that they were convicted. The details of their indictment, trial, and sentencing are being investigated.