(Minghui.org) Two residents of Guangshan County, Henan Province were both sentenced to prison following their arrests in 2023 for their faith in Falun Gong, a mind-body practice that has been persecuted by the Chinese Communist Party since July 1999.

Ms. Liu Dezhi was given three and a half years and is currently serving time at the Henan Province Women’s Prison (located in Xinxiang City). Details of her arrest, trial, and sentencing are unclear.

Mr. Xu Yuxiang was given one and a half years and is serving time at the Zhengzhou Prison (located in Xinmi City).

Mr. Xu’s sentencing followed his initial arrest in March 2023 at his storefront. The Guangshan County Domestic Security Office broke in and confiscated more than 100 Falun Gong books and several broken printers from his store. His wife was also arrested at the same time but was later released after paying a 20,000 yuan bail bond.

Due to a local outbreak of COVID-19, the Guangshan County Detention Center declined to admit Mr. Xu, so he was released under house arrest. The police installed a surveillance camera outside his storefront to monitor him. They soon arrested him again and managed to get the detention center to admit him.

Mr. Xu was later sentenced to 1.5 years with a 20,000-yuan fine. The police said the 20,000-yuan bail bond his wife paid would be used to pay the fine. His prison term is set to end in 2024.