(Minghui.org) Minghui.org previously reported on the four-year prison sentence of a Ning’an City, Heilongjiang Province, man for his faith in Falun Gong. This report provides newly available information about his arrest and prosecution.
Mr. Guan Lianbin was arrested on August 20, 2025, and was sentenced to four years after a court hearing on December 23. His appeals lawyer visited the Harbin City Intermediate Court on January 12, 2026, and submitted a request for an open hearing. The lawyer met with Mr. Guan on January 30, 2026, and reviewed the case file that same day.
More About Mr. Guan’s Arrest
Mr. Guan was arrested by officers from the Songbei District Police Department in Harbin, the capital city of Heilongjiang Province. It is unclear whether Harbin police went to Ning’an City (nearly 300 miles away) to arrest him or if he was arrested in Harbin.
The police targeted Mr. Guan after a surveillance video recorded him passing a place in Harbin City where someone found Falun Gong informational materials. They then accused him of distributing the materials. While it is perfectly legal to distribute such materials, Mr. Guan actually had not done it.
Mr. Guan’s family was notified two weeks later (around August 3, 2025) to pick him up. They went to Harbin but were shocked to learn that he had been transferred to another facility.
Trial Court Violates Legal Procedures
Mr. Guan’s sister applied to be his non-lawyer defender. The Daowai District Court in Harbin City threatened her with consequences if she dared to defend her brother, a Falun Gong practitioner. She remained undeterred, and the court said that they would not approve of her application unless she agreed to a court hearing the very next day. If she did not agree, they said she’d have to obtain over 20 signatures (several of which the court knew she would never be able to secure) in order for her application to go through. The court also threatened to bar her family from attending the trial if she said no to the next-day hearing.
Mr. Guan’s sister had no choice but agree to have him stand trial the next day (December 23, 2025).
The trial, however, was virtual, even though was Mr. Guan opposed to it. By law, virtual hearings are allowed only when there is a health emergency declaration (such as the pandemic situation) or the defendant has health issues. The court must also obtain consent from the defendant. Judge Wang Tingting did not have Mr. Guan’s consent. He was in very good health and would not have had trouble traveling by car from the detention center to the courthouse.
Mr. Guan’s trial lawyer pointed out that the police violated the double jeopardy clause by prosecuting his client twice for the same alleged offense. Mr. Guan was given 15 days of administrative detention following his arrest. Without any additional evidence, the police put him on criminal detention instead of releasing him.
Details of Trial
Prosecutor Fu Ya’nan of the Daowai District Procuratorate provided an incomplete case file for Mr. Guan’s trial lawyer to review. During the trial on December 23, 2025, she accused the lawyer of failing to watch the surveillance video showing his client passing that said place where Falun Gong materials were found. The lawyer reminded the prosecutor that the video was not part of the case file given to him for review.
Judge Wang allowed the video to be played in court. The lawyer noted that there was only two minutes of footage showing his client lingering in that place. He questioned how it could possible for his client to go into an apartment building to distribute eight Falun Gong brochures in just two minutes?
Mr. Guan’s sister also raised doubts about the prosecution evidence. She said the video showed no materials in her brother’s hand, if he were to have distributed anything. Judge Wang blurted out, “Your brother’s clothes were bulging [with materials hiding inside].” Mr. Guan’s sister responded that it was summer when Mr. Guan was arrested. He was wearing a short-sleeved shirt. How could he hide brochures inside his clothes?
Prosecutor Fu claimed that the police discovered 20 copies of Falun Gong brochures and over 10 Falun Gong flyers in Mr. Guan’s home. However, no law in China has criminalized Falun Gong, and there is nothing wrong for anyone to own such materials. Mr. Guan, however, did not possess the said materials. He suspected that the police planted the materials at his home before conducting the raid.
Additionally, the said materials alleged to be taken from Mr. Guan’s home did not have his fingerprints on them. The police however insisted that the fingerprints found from items he did own were sufficient to demonstrate his “ownership” of the said materials.
Mr. Guan’s sister also testified as to how Falun Gong turned her brother into a better person, a caring son, and a loving brother. Mr. Guan never accepted kickbacks while doing his sales job. He also took good care of their parents. When Mr. Guan’s sister was diagnosed with cancer, he stayed with her to take care of her. He also used his savings of several tens of thousands yuan to cover her medical expenses.
She demanded her brother’s acquittal. Judge Wang adjourned the hearing without issuing a verdict, but later sentenced Mr. Guan at an unknown time.
Mr. Guan’s appeals lawyer reviewed the case file on January 30, 2026, and noted that the surveillance video was still not included in the file. In other words, he was given the same incomplete file to review as the trial lawyer.
Mr. Guan previously served a five-year prison term (2003 – 2008) prior to this latest round of persecution. See the related reports for details of his past persecution.
Related Reports:
Once Jailed for 5 Years, Heilongjiang Man Gets Another 4 Years for Practicing Falun Gong
The Persecution of Falun Dafa Practitioner Guan Lianbin
Persecution of Falun Gong Practitioners in Mudanjiang Prison Division 6 and Division 8
Torture at Mudanjiang Prison Has Caused Over Ten Deaths and Numerous Disabilities
Brutal Torture of Falun Dafa Practitioners in Mudanjiang Prison
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