(Minghui.org) Falun Gong practitioners Mr. Chen Yexin and Mr. Han Chunlong from Shen Yang City, Liangning Province, were on a business trip in Dandong City when officers from Sidaoqiao Police Station in the Zhengxing District arrested them in their hotel room on December 11, 2012. They were tortured during interrogation and are now in Dandong City Detention Center.
After they were arrested, their families and lawyers went to Sidaoqiao Police Station and demanded that they be released immediately. On January 10, 2013, their families were informed that the police were going to transfer Mr. Han and Mr. Chen's case to the Procuratorate. When their families went to the Procuratorate, they were told that the proceedings were at the “supplementary evidence investigation” stage. Sidaoqiao Police Station has been fabricating evidence to continue detaining Mr. Han and Mr. Chen, with the intent to prosecute them.
Their family members and lawyers went before the Zhenxing Procuratorate and accused the Sidaoqiao Police Station officers of criminal violations in their interrogation and physical abuse of Mr. Han and Mr. Xhen, They asked the Procuratorate to punish the officials involved in accordance with the law and to protect Mr. Han and Mr. Chen's personal safety and rights.
Police break in
Mr. Chen Xinye is a company manager. Mr. Han Chunlong is responsible for procurement and is also a driver. They work very diligently and have received much praise from their superiors, colleagues, and customers.
In December 2012, they went to Dandong City on a business trip and stayed in Dantie Hotel. After 9 a.m. on December 11, around six or seven officers from the Dandong National Security Division, Zhenxing Police Department, Sidaoqiao Police Station, etc. broke into their hotel room, arrested the two men, and took them to Sidaoqiao Police Station in the Zhenxing District. They also confiscated two laptops, two cell phones, wallets, cash, a bank card and office network card, and other personal belongings. They didn’t even leave a list of the things they had taken.
The officers claimed that the Internet police had detected that the men were sending emails about Falun Gong by network IP. Mr. Chen and Mr. Han said they didn’t violate any laws.
Tortured during interrogation
They both refused to confess to any crime. Two officers from Sidaoqiao Police Station kicked, punched, and slapped Mr. Chen. When other police officers said that there was a surveillance system in the room, the officers took Mr. Chen to a place where the monitoring system couldn’t reach and continued the brutal interrogation.
Since Mr. Chen and Mr. Han refused to give any kind of “confession,” the police forced their thumbprints on blank sheets of paper. Both of them were determined not to have their fingerprints taken. Officer Zhang Wei, in his 20s, grabbed Mr. Han and pushed him down. Then over six or seven officers beat him and held his hand to sign the paper. They sprayed a mist into his face that made him choke and cough and his face hurt.
The police planned to send Mr. Chen and Mr. Han to a detention center on November 11, 2012. However, the proper documents were incomplete, so they fabricated them on the 13th and took both men to the Dandong Detention Center. At that time, Mr. Han’s blood pressure was 191, and his heartbeat was 130. He lost hearing in both ears due to the beating. His leg was swollen, and he limped. After Mr. Han was arrested, he started a hunger strike to protest the persecution. He is very weak and almost unable to speak.
On December 17, 2012, their families hired an attorney to meet with Mr. Chen and Mr. Han. Both of them described how the Sidaoqiao Police Station officers interrogated and physically abused them. So far they have not “confessed” to anything.
Sidaoqiao Police Station officers violated the law
Their families consulted the lawyer and learned that Mr. Chen and Mr. Han didn’t violate the law by practicing Falun Gong. For the police to arrest and interrogate them, however, was a violation of Articles 35 and 36 of the Constitution and articles of Criminal Law. They deprived citizens of their freedom of religious belief, illegally broke into citizens' homes, conducted illegal searches, abused their power, stole, illegally detained the innocent, and thwarted the implementation of the law.
Their families demanded that the police release unconditionally those who have practice Falun Gong and return all their confiscated property. They will further pursue the matter through legal channels. Their family members said that the reason they were launching a legal investigation was to prevent these police officers from continuing to violate the law and to have justice served. The families urged everyone to sign and support these two Falun Gong practitioners.
Contact information:
Zhenxing District Procuratorate
Liu Keping, director, Investigation and Supervision Division: +86-415-6276437
Fan Shitao, Branch of the Public Security Bureau: +86-15941510095(Cell)
Yu Chunliang, leader of the Procuratorate
Xu Wei, Zhang Yajun, Ma Qingyi, and Tang Xiguo, deputy leaders of the Procuratorate
Du, Zhenxing District National Security Team (in charge of persecution): +86-13842503900(Cell)
Dandong Detention Center: +86-415-663043, +86-415-2379099(Office)
Dai Xiaoming, director and Wang Jing (female), deputy director
Sidaoqiao Police Station in the Zhenxing District
Yu Tiemin, director: +86-13842536782(Cell) email: 937080667@QQ.com
Personnel involved in the arrest:
Ding Feng, team leader of Police and Security Department in the Zhenxing District: +86-13904156639(Cell)
Please refer to the original Chinese text for more names and telephone numbers.
