(Minghui.org) A 74-year-old man in Changli County, Hebei Province, was recently sentenced to four and a half years for raising awareness about the persecution of his faith, Falun Gong.

Mr. Wang Qinghua was initially arrested on August 16, 2022, for talking to people about Falun Gong at a local market. The arresting officers from the Anshan Police Station broke into his home and confiscated his computer, printer, two cell phones, Falun Gong books, and other personal belongings. He was sent to the Funing Detention Center the next day and transferred to the Changli County Detention Center on September 13. The police released him on a one-year bail on September 22, 2022.

The Funing District Procuratorate indicted Mr. Wang on June 27, 2024. He appeared in the Funing District on August 20, 2024. Prosecutor Zou Sumin failed to demonstrate a legal basis for charging him with “undermining law enforcement with a cult organization,” which has been used as the standard pretext to frame Falun Gong practitioners.

Mr. Wang’s lawyer demanded to cross-examine the “evidence” in court, but was denied by judge Zhang Wenbin.

On September 23, 2024, Mr. Wang was notified by the court to go there the next day to attend his sentencing hearing. Instead he went into hiding to avoid the persecution.

Mr. Wang was eventually arrested on July 31, 2026, by officers from the Xinji Police Station. He is held at the Changli County Detention Center and convicted on September 17.

Mr. Wang took up Falun Gong in 1996 and his cholecystitis and Hepatitis B soon disappeared. He excelled at work and received many awards.