(Clearwisdom.net) Since the persecution began on July 20, 1999 Falun Gong practitioners in Panjin City, Liaoning Province have suffered severe financial persecution in addition to physical and spiritual persecution. According to the statistics from Xinglongtai District and Dawa County, Falun Gong practitioners in these two areas suffered a direct loss of 1,343,000 yuan, 443,000 yuan of which were in the form of illegal fines, 320,000 in the form of money extorted by police, and 580,000 in the form of suspended salaries.

As part of this evil persecution, some Falun Gong practitioners lost their income as a result of detention and not being able to go home. Many practitioners suffered indirect financial losses after being dismissed or laid off from work, transferred to another work unit or not being able to conduct business. Many families of practitioners who have had money extorted from them by corrupt authorities dare not publicize it, making it very difficult to estimate the total loss suffered by practitioners and their families.

The following lists some of the crimes committed by the Panjin City Public Security Bureau:

One elderly Falun Gong practitioner was arrested and detained by Xinglongtai District Public Security Bureau. He went on hunger strike to protest. The police asked his family to hand over 20,000 yuan for a "security deposit." In less than half a year Liu Jingyu, the assistant team leader of the police force, sent this practitioner's family a confiscation notice. The security deposit was now considered a fine.

Dong Hanwei, the policeman of the Yushuxiang Police Station in Dawa County, "fined" practitioners a surprisingly high amount of money, from 5,000 yuan to 15,000 yuan each. Each new person was fined more than the last. One practitioner was fined 25,000 yuan two times. The police also harassed practitioners during the Spring Festival. They took practitioners away from home every two to three days if they did not pay.

Xinglongtai District Public Security Bureau was among the most severe in the financial persecution. Zhang Runqiu, a former policeman of the National Security Team, asked practitioners' family members for money when arresting practitioners. Moreover, he negotiated with their family members for additional amounts of money for his boss.

Families handed over money to the 610 Office and police to lessen the persecution of their loved ones. Many families handed in 20,000 yuan each time. Some paid even more, yet did not dare to make it public for fear of further recriminations.

Robbing Practitioners

Liu Huanzhang, the chief policeman of Xinli Police Station in Dawa County, extorted Falun Gong practitioners without going through any procedure. When practitioners asked for their money back from him, he denied knowing about it, refused to return the money and did not even give them a receipt.

The chief and the assistant chief of Lujiaxiang Police station in Panshan County arrested Falun Gong practitioners on the street and took away 4,000 yuan found on the practitioners. When the practitioners were released from the detention center, they asked the policemen to return the money. The policemen said that they did not know anything about the money. Later on one of the assistant chiefs left his position as he was scared of the publicity of this matter, as the chief had shifted the responsibility to him.