(Minghui.org) A 78-year-old woman has been in criminal detention following her arrest on June 30, 2020, for raising awareness about the persecution of Falun Gong, an ancient spiritual discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since 1999.

Ms. Dong Yunxian, from Wenshan City, Yunnan Province, was arrested while distributing informational materials about Falun Gong around 9 a.m. on June 30, 2020. More than 10 police officers, agents from the 610 Office (an extralegal agency created to persecute Falun Gong), and several members of the residential committee ransacked her home an hour later. Her two computers, two printers, Falun Gong books, and other materials were confiscated. Ms. Dong was then taken back to Wolong Police Station and interrogated. 

Ms. Dong’s family went to seek her release the next morning. The police denied their request and told them to come back at 3 p.m. When they returned in the afternoon, they were told that Ms. Dong has been placed in criminal detention. 

Ms. Dong is now in the Yanshan County Detention Center.

Tao Zhengwu, the deputy director of Wenshan City Domestic involved in Ms. Dong’s arrest, has actively participated in the persecution of local Falun Gong practitioners. 

On May 13, 2020, he arrested Ms. Ren Huaiping and Ms. Peng Yunkui, both in their 70s. He ransacked their homes and even harassed Ms. Peng’s daughter in Kunming City, about 200 miles away.