(Minghui.org) Four Falun Gong practitioners in Dongning City, Heilongjiang Province, were sentenced to prison for their faith on February 4, 2026.
Ms. Su Hong was sentenced to nine years and fined 5,000 yuan. Mr. Shen Jinxiang, 65, and Ms. Jia Yanfeng, each received five years and a 2,000-yuan fine. Mr. Yang Kui was given four and a half years with a 2,000-yuan fine. All four of them have filed appeals.
The practitioners were arrested during a police sweep on July 18, 2025. The Dongning City Police Department submitted their joint case to the Hailin City Procuratorate on August 19, 2025. Mr. Shen and Mr. Yang were transferred from the Dongning City Lockup to the Hailin City Detention Center on August 27, while Ms. Jia and Ms. Su remain detained at the Mudanjiang City Detention Center.
The Hailin City Procuratorate is designated to handle all Falun Gong cases in the nearby regions, including Dongning City, Hailin City, Ningan City, Muling City, Suifenhe City and Linkou County.
Mr. Yang’s daughter, Ms. Yang Jing, and Ms. Jia’s daughter, Ms. Yang Nanxi, went to the procuratorate on September 23, 2025 to inquire about the status of their parents’ case. They also prepared a letter for prosecutor Fan Jiayao, urging her not to participate in the persecution. Fan refused to take it. They then gave the letter to Duan Tao, an officer of the case management center, and asked Duan to pass it on to prosecutor Fan. Duan initially refused but later took it.
Ms. Yang Jing and Ms. Yang Nanxi next went to the complaints department at the procuratorate, only to be arrested after Duan called in six police officers. Both women were released later that day.
During the hearing for the four practitioners by the Hailin City Court on December 24, 2025, Ms. Yang Jing, Ms. Yang Nanxi and Ms. Shen Lin, the daughter of Mr. Shen, represented their parents as non-lawyer family defenders. The practitioners’ lawyers also defended their innocence. The presiding judge, Yan Junlong, repeatedly interrupted their defense and then adjourned the session.
At the second hearing on December 30, Mr. Yang’s son was removed from the court gallery because he objected to the court’s violation of legal procedures (details unknown). Judge Yan continued to interrupt the lawyers and family defenders while they were presenting their defense statements.
Unable to proceed, Ms. Yang Jing and Ms. Yang Nanxi decided to quit representing their parents and dismiss the lawyers. They told judge Yan that they would hire new lawyers for their parents. It’s not clear whether a third hearing took place before the practitioners were convicted.
The police arrested Ms. Yang Jing on January 14, 2026, and detained her for 15 days, in an attempt to stop her from seeking justice for her father.
Dongning City, Heilongjiang Province: Four Residents Tried for Practicing Falun Gong