(Minghui.org) A Wuhan woman's family arrived two hours earlier than the detention center's posted pickup time, but they saw no trace of her as they waited from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on her expected release day.
The family learned from an insider later that their loved one had been secretly transferred to a brainwashing center that day without their knowledge.
Ms. Xia Meirong was arrested on September 23, 2014 for distributing anti-firewall software to help people read uncensored news about the persecution of Falun Gong. She spent 10 days at a local detention center and now remains incarcerated at Yusunshan Brainwashing Center in Caidian District, Wuhan City.
Ms. Xia's family went to the arresting agency, Erqiaojie Police Station, to inquire about her release date shortly after her arrest. They grew suspicious when deputy chief Li Huiming refused to give a definitive date. He kept saying it was either October 3rd or 4th and used all kinds of excuses to not give the family a firm answer.
On October 3, one group of family members went to the detention center while another group headed for the police station. The first group arrived at 8, two hours before the posted pickup time. As soon as the door opened, they began to look for their loved one. However, they were told that she was already picked up before 8. They couldn't believe their ears, and waited there until 5 in the afternoon. Still they saw no trace of her.
In the meantime, the second group had no better luck at the police station. They were first told some officers were dispatched to pick Ms. Xia up. When they learned from the first group that she was nowhere to be found, they pressed deputy chief Tian for an explanation. He responded casually, “We are only responsible for sending people to the detention center. We have no pickup duty.”
The family was furious yet helpless. It wasn't until a few days later that they got confirmation from an insider that Ms. Xia had been sent to a brainwashing center on her expected release day.