(Minghui.org) A court in Nanjing City held a sentencing hearing and announced prison sentences for four locals detained for their faith.

Ms. Xie Lihua, Ms. Tang Jingmei, Ms. Pan Xiaoqin, and Ms. Pan Qingning were arrested on March 23, 2015, for refusing to renounce Falun Gong, a spiritual discipline being persecuted by the Chinese communist regime.

The four women were tried on September 17, 2015, after which their case remained dormant.

Two days before the unexpected hearing on October 14, 2016, Qinhuai District Court officials summoned the practitioners’ families for a talk, but they mentioned nothing about the imminent hearing.

The families were stunned when they found out their loved ones were sentenced to prison. Ms. Xie was given 3 years, Ms. Tang and Ms. Pan Xiaoqin each 2 years, and Ms. Pan Qingning 1 year.

This is not the first time that the four women have been targeted for their faith. All of them had been repeatedly arrested and given forced labor or prison terms in the past. Ms. Tang and Ms. Pan Xiaoqin were once each given 4 years of imprisonment.