Because of going on a hunger strike to protest the persecution, Mr. Zhang Litan was beaten to death by guards and inmates on November 17, 2008, just one month after being imprisoned in Jinzhou City Prison.

The Details of How Mr. Zhang Litian Was Beaten to Death in Jinzhou City Prison 

Mr. Zhang Litian, 36, was from Chaoyang City, Liaoning Province. Only one month after being jailed in Jinzhou City Prison, he was beaten to death by two wardens and two prisoners. Below are the details revealed recently.

Mr. Zhang Litian

Warden Cheng Jun is in charge of production. Mr. Zhang Litian had been illegally detained, so he resisted doing forced labor. Cheng Jun and Deputy Warden Zhang Baozhi often tortured Mr. Zhang Litian. At 9:00 a.m. on November 17, 2008, Cheng Jun and Zhang Baozhi called Mr. Zhang to a small room on the second floor. He had been on a hunger strike for 24 hours in protest of his detention. They also called prisoners Li Yong and Liu Peiyan to the room. Under the two warden's instruction, the four of them beat Mr. Zhang Litian brutally. They took three to four turns each, stopping to rest went they got tired, then starting again.

At lunch time, the other prisoners did not see Mr. Zhang Litian come down to have lunch. They thought he was locked in the small cell. Prisoner Liu Peiyan said to all, "I beat Falun Gong (meaning Mr. Zhang Litian) until he gave in! He no longer wants to be on hunger strike and asked me if he can buy instant noodles with the 200 yuan on his account."

They beat Mr. Zhang Litian for the last time at around 2:00 p.m. Then Mr. Zhang sat in the corner not moving. Warden Cheng Jun and Deputy Warden Zhang Baozhi ordered prisoners Li Yong and Liu Peiyan to watch Mr. Zhang. The two prisoners were teasing Mr. Zhang, "What happened, Falun Gong? How come you won't get up?" They went to pull Mr. Zhang up and discovered that he had died with both his eyes open.

At 3:00 p.m., people saw prisoner Li Jinggang and a few others carry Mr. Zhang down from the second floor. They pushed his body into the prison clinic on the meal cart. The doctor said, "He's already dead, why bother sending him to me now?" The entire body of 163 prisoners in the 12th Ward know Mr. Zhang Litian was beaten to death, but the prison administration is still trying to hide the facts.

On November 20, 2008, the Jinzhou City Suburban Procurator arrived at Jinzhou Prison to investigate. Warden Cheng Jun and Zhang Baozhi asked designated prisoners, "The Procurators are here, do you know how to speak to them?" These prisoners answered yes. They wanted these wardens to help them reduce their prison terms. They told the procurators that Mr. Zhang Litian died from sickness. Other prisoners in the ward are condemning these prisoners who gave false statements.

Jinzhou Prison Director Xin Tingquan told Cheng Jun, "You must deal with this matter well by yourself." On November 24, 2008, Mr. Zhang Litian's family went to the funeral home to see his body. One guard said to the crematorium employee, "Cremate the body as soon as the family has seen it." But the employee said that the order must be signed by the family. So the attempt to destroy the body failed.

Mr. Zhang's family requested the death certificate from the prison, but Deputy warden Zhang Baozhi refused. Mr. Zhang's family found injuries on his body. On the afternoon of November 24, 2008, the lawyer hired by the family requested that an autopsy be done to ascertain the cause of death. On the morning of November 28, 2008, Jinzhou City Suburban Procuratorate employee Liu Xiuyan said that an autopsy would be allowed, but it had to be done in the Jinzhou City Hospital.

Mr. Zhang's family fears that a local autopsy may produce false results, so they requested that the autopsy be done by third-party forensic experts that they would hire from the outside.