(Minghui.org) A married couple who live in Mengyin County, Shandong Province, were sentenced to four years and imprisoned because they practice Falun Gong, Minghui.org learned recently.

The wrongful conviction of Mr. Wei Jiuxiang, 82, and his wife Ms. Zhang Yanmiao, 85, stemmed from their arrests on August 26, 2022. They and about ten other local practitioners were reading Falun Gong books at the couple’s home when officers from the Duozhuang Town Police Station broke in.

The police raided the practitioners’ homes and interrogated and videotaped them at the police station. The practitioners were released on bail at dusk.

Mr. Wei, who became blind and incapacitated a few years before he was arrested, and his wife were both sentenced to four years in 2024. They were not immediately ordered to serve time, but the police seized Mr. Wei at home around May 20, 2025. and Ms. Zhang on May 26. Ms. Zhang is currently held at the Shandong Province Women’s Prison and Mr. Wei is at the Shandong Province Prison, both are located in the capital city, Jinan.

This is not the first time the couple has been targeted for their faith. Mr. Wei was taken to a brainwashing center in late 2000. On January 4, 2001, chief Du Zhongtai of the Duozhuang Town Police Station hit him and 12 other practitioners on their heads with rubber clubs more than 20 times. Some practitioners had their noses broken and others were covered in blood. Du yelled, “I’ll see if you still dare to practice Falun Gong!” The next day, instructor Zhang Shimin hit Mr. Wei with a rubber club over 60 times, knocking him to the ground.

Ms. Zhang was arrested with another practitioner on March 5, 2016, when she talked to people about Falun Gong. Officers from the Duozhuang Police Station raided her home and seized her husband. The couple and the other practitioner were released around 11 p.m. that night.

Chief Wang from the Duozhuang Town Police Station and three other officers aided the couple’s home around 11 a.m. on September 28, 2018, without producing a search warrant. The couple’s Falun Gong books, portrait of Falun Gong’s founder, and music players were confiscated. Mr. Wei was taken to the police station for interrogation. After that, the police brought him to the local lockup, which refused to admit him due to his advanced age. He was released that afternoon.