(Minghui.org) Mr. Chang Shi, his wife, and their 19-year-old daughter were illegally arrested on August 9, 2012, by officers from the Changjiang Police Station and Changhong Neighborhood Committee. His wife was tortured nearly to death and taken to a forced labor camp with an oxygen tube in her nose. Mr. Chang was subjected to a forced interrogation. Officials at the Fengman District Police Department intended to impose a jail sentence on Mr. Chang, but his case was rejected on February 28, 2013, by the Fengman District Procuratorate, due to a lack of evidence. However, he remains in police custody and may face further persecution.

Husband and Wife Begin Practicing Falun Gong Together

Mr. Chang Shi's Family: Wife Zhang Jingdong (first on right), older daughter (second on right), younger daughter Chang Huiying (front)

Mr. Chang Shi, 53, was formerly an engineer with the Jilin City Telecommunications Bureau. He was awarded the title of “Accomplished Worker” in his unit several times.

Mr. Chang's wife, Zhang Jingdong, was a principal accountant at a brokerage firm. She suffered from heart disease, neurasthenia, and other conditions, which made it impossible for her to continue working.

The couple heard about Falun Gong in 1997, and Mr. Chang accompanied his wife every day to learn the exercises. Ms. Zhang's health was restored one month later. The couple realized that Falun Gong not only had wonderful health benefits, but was also a profound practice possessing mighty virtue.

Illegal Arrest Leads to Brutal Interrogation and Job Dismissal

The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has been brutally persecuting Falun Gong since 1999, but Mr. Chang and his family persisted in their faith, which in turn resulted in relentless harassment and persecution by CCP authorities.

Mr. Chang was arrested on April 16, 2002 by officers from the Jilin City National Security Bureau. His apartment was ransacked, and the police confiscated a computer, a printer, a CD burner, his daughter's gold necklace, and a newly-purchased mini-van worth more than 30,000 yuan. They even took Mr. Chang's new shoes, but were unsuccessful in locating his housing certificate.

In an attempt to force Mr. Chang to reveal local sites where practitioners made truth clarification materials about Falun Gong, the police interrogated him using torture. In one brutal torture called “iron rods roll legs,” Mr. Chang's flesh was separated from the bones in his legs. Police officer Chen from the National Security Bureau offered to released him for 50,000 yuan.

Detained in Jilin Detention Center for six months, he suffered a great deal mentally and physically. He was eventually released, after detention center officials extorted funds from his family and friends. But upon returning home, he was dismissed from his job.

Wife in Critical Condition in a Forced Labor Camp

On the day of Mr. Chang's arrest, August 9, police officers beat him and dragged into a patrol car. Approximately eight officers went upstairs to ransack his apartment. Upon illegally entering the apartment, they kicked his wife to the ground and arrested both her and their 19-year-old daughter, Chang Huiying.

The police proceeded to confiscate 6,000 yuan in cash, two computers, and other valuables. Ms. Zhang was tied up and brought downstairs. More than thirty people standing in front of the apartment building witnessed the proceedings. Ms. Zhang told the crowd, “I practice Falun Gong. We are good people. We didn't commit any crime.”

After the police conducted a forced interrogation of Mr. Chang, he was taken to Jilin City Detention Center. His wife, Ms. Zhang, was sent to Jilin City Lockup, where she was severely beaten and ended-up in critical condition ten days later.

Ms. Zhang was taken the hospital on August 23. She was having difficulty breathing and exhibited the symptoms of a heart attack and stroke. After treating her for thirty minutes, the doctors advised that Ms. Zhang remain hospitalized for further treatment. However, the police pushed her out of the emergency room with IVs in both arms and an oxygen tube in her nose. She was put in an ambulance, and escorted by police to the Changchun Forced Labor Camp.

The couple's daughter, Chang Huiying, was incarcerated in Shahezi Brainwashing Center. She was released after enduring severe physical and mental tortures.

Mr. Chang had rented a vending space on the campus of Beihua University, but after the entire family was arrested on August 9, university officials canceled his lease in response to pressure from regime officials.

Case Dismissed by Procuratorate but Mr. Chang Still in Police Custody

Officers from Fengman District Police Department attempted to get Mr. Chang sentenced to jail, but his case was dismissed by the District Procuratorate on February 28, 2013. He remains in custody in Jilin Detention Center. His family has hired a defense lawyer and they are seeking his unconditional release.

For more details about the persecution of Mr. Chang Shi and his family, please read:

"Former Engineer Mr. Chang Shi with the Jilin City Telecommunications Bureau Arrested” http://en.minghui.org/html/articles/2012/10/30/136091.html

“Mr. Chang Shi's Entire Family Arrested in Jilin City; Wife's Life in Danger” http://en.minghui.org/html/articles/2012/9/10/135354.html

Partial list of perpetrators:

Li Haibin, Jilin City Police Department head, Political and Legal Affairs Committee head: +86-432-62406001(Office): +86-432- 62055999, +86-432- 62010999, +86-18043200001 (Cell), +86-432-62010802 (Home)
Shang Tao, deputy head of Jilin City Police Department: +86-432-62406008 (Office), +86-13904421888, +86-432-63025999
Kong Detan, head of the Domestic Security Team: +86-432-62409085 (Office), +86-432-62492078, +86-13704310085
(For more perpetrators' contact information, please refer to the original article on Chinese Minghui)