(Minghui.org) Mr. Liu Yunchao from Wuhan City, Hubei Province, passed away at 7 p.m. on July 7, 2012. He was 56 years old.

Mr. Liu had been illegally arrested and sentenced to three years of imprisonment in 2009 for practicing Falun Dafa. He was incarcerated in the Fanjiatai Prison, where he was brutally beaten, tortured and injected with unknown drugs. He became nearly blind, unable to speak and paralyzed from the waist down. Mr. Liu was released from prison in a near-death condition in September 2010. There were many visible injuries on his body. He passed away after being in a coma for two years.

His elder brother, Mr. Liu Hanchao, arranged his brother’s funeral. He spoke with tears in his eyes to overseas Minghui reporters and asked the international community for help to bring those who persecuted his brother to justice.

Mr. Liu Yunchao before the persecution.

Mr. Liu Obtained a Second Life by Practicing Falun Dafa

Mr. Liu Yunchao was a tall man of about 5feet 11inches. In his youth, he was known to be a bad kid. He fought a lot and eventually became a street gangster. Everyone was afraid of him. When he began to practice Falun Dafa, however, his life turned around and he became a humble and caring person. He said that Falun Dafa changed him completely and gave meaning to his otherwise sorrowful life.

Mr. Liu's brother, Mr. Liu Hanchao, recalled: “Liu Yunchao began practicing Dafa in 1996. Before that, he frequently got sick and had stomach cancer. After practicing Dafa, he became very healthy and energetic. He had a hunchback previously, which straightened out after he started the practice.”

After obtaining Dafa, Mr. Liu Yunchao strictly followed Falun Dafa's main principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. As a result, the former street gangster learned to be modest and polite. Mr. Liu’s family was in awe of the complete change in his character after learning Falun Dafa.

Brutally Beaten for Holding On to His Faith

In April 2009, Mr. Liu Yunchao was sentenced to seven years of imprisonment by the Xialu District Court in Huangshi City, after he refused to be “transformed” and give up practicing Falun Dafa. When Mr. Liu appealed, his sentence was reduced to three years. He was then sent to the Fanjiatai Prison.

The prison's director Xiao Tianbo threatened Mr. Liu: “If you don't give up practicing Falun Dafa, you will not live well.” Mr. Liu refused to give up his faith and was brutally beaten. His lower body became paralyzed and he could not take care of himself. In critical condition, he was taken to the prison hospital for emergency treatment. The Jiangan District 610 Office director Hu Shaobin was heard saying, “Just let him die there.”

On September 7, 2010, Mr. Liu’s brother was notified to pick him up. Mr. Liu was near death, and the prison authorities were afraid of being held responsible for his death.

Mr. Liu’s brother recalled: “I picked him up from the prison hospital. The doctors said what they were told to say--that he had a stroke and had a buildup of fluid in his brain. In reality, my brother had injuries all over his body. He vomited blood and had blood in his stool. He had lost his front teeth and his remaining teeth were all loose. I didn't know whether the teeth were in that condition because of the beatings or whether they were plied by something. When my brother was briefly conscious, he said there were eight policemen who beat him. I do not know the police officers' names and neither did he, but we do know that the police involved were from an upper branch of the Shayang Forced Labor Camp.”

Mr. Liu had been a very strong and healthy man. But as a result of the persecution, he became very thin, and his body was covered with cuts and injuries.

His brother, Mr. Liu Hanchao, said: “When he was conscious, my brother said that the prison authorities ordered him to give up practicing Falun Dafa. They wanted to 'transform' him. But he was a practitioner; how could he go against Falun Dafa? ”

Injected with Unknown Drugs , in a Coma for Two Years

When Mr. Liu Yunchao passed away, his hands and back were dark purple and covered in herpes-like sores. Other Falun Dafa practitioners who have been released from the Fanjiatai Prison said they suspected that Mr. Liu had been injected with unknown drugs, which caused these symptoms.

Mr. Liu's brother also recalled that Mr. Liu had been “injected with drugs” prior to being released. He said: “He had injuries all over him. He was in a coma when we brought him home. The cuts on his back were from electric batons and he even had injuries on his hip bones. He lay in bed for two years and we took care of him. He was basically in a coma the entire time due to the unknown drugs that he had been injected with. We don't know what drug it was.”

Many practitioners have experienced being injected with unknown drugs while in the Fanjiatai Prison. One practitioner said: “The prison hospital and the general hospital are participating in persecuting Falun Dafa practitioners. Many practitioners were put into these hospitals and came out in critical condition. Over the past several years, six Falun Dafa practitioners have been tortured to death in the Fanjiatai Prison.”

Family Harrassed, in Deep Grief

After Mr. Liu Yunchao was allowed to go home, his family spent a lot of money on treatments to try to improve his condition. These expenses were covered by his brother and other family members. Just one week’s medical expenses from September 7 to September 14, 2010, amounted to 10,000 yuan.

The residential authorities from the 27th Street Neighborhood, the Changjian Residential Area, and the Daijiashan Residential Area (where Mr. Liu's household was located) continued to harass the family following his release from prison.

Mr. Liu's brother, Mr. Liu Hanchao, said: “Ruan, the Party secretary of the 27th Street Neighborhood Committee, forced my brother and his wife to divorce. My mother is over 80 years old and had also practiced Falun Dafa in the past, but was too afraid to continue after my brother was arrested. She was so worried when my brother was beaten and became paralyzed. The evil Communist Party will be held accountable for all of this.” He added that he is determined to clarify the facts about the persecution to more people, in his brother's memory.

Mr. Liu Yunchao's family and friends are in deep grief over the loss of their loved one. They hope that one day they will be able to see the perpetrators brought to justice.

Mr. Liu's brother said with tears in his eyes: “He's already dead. What else can I say? I just hope that the global human rights groups will help punish the Communist Party [for the persecution]. That's my hope.”