(Minghui.org) A Ji'nan woman died suddenly on February 28, 2016, while in detention. Her family suspects foul play, as she was a healthy woman prior to her arrest for refusing to give up her faith in Falun Gong, a spiritual discipline being persecuted by the Chinese communist regime.

Ms. Chen Xiumei, around 59 years old, was taken into custody on June 24, 2015, and her home was ransacked later that day.

Her family questioned what could have happened in detention that led to her sudden death this February. Ji'nan City Detention Center refused to give out any information on Ms. Chen's detention there, but instead offered a 20,000 yuan payment for funeral expenses in exchange for a lawsuit waiver.

The authorities threatened to cremate Ms. Chen's body on March 15 regardless, even if her family declined the detention center's offer.

At the time of writing, it is not clear how Ms. Chen's family responded to the offer, nor are details of the funeral arrangements known.