(Minghui.org) A Beijing resident was sentenced to prison for distributing informational materials about Falun Gong, a spiritual discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since 1999.

Mr. Li Yiheng, 37, took up Falun Gong in August 2003. On September 19, 2019, two plainclothes officers, Zhang Guangshuai and Wang Xiaoyu, went to the car dealership where Mr. Li worked. They pulled Mr. Li aside and pretended to want to order a customized car.

As they were talking, one officer said, “I’m going to give you a surprise today.” Then he took out an arrest notice and seized Mr. Li. 

Mr. Li insisted to finish things at work before he could go with the police. But the police wouldn’t let him and pushed him against the ground. His managers also tried to prevent the police from arresting him. The police then talked to the manager in private for 20 minutes, and then took Mr. Li away. 

After Mr. Li was taken to the Yizhuang Police Station, the police searched his residence twice without his presence. It turned out the police targeted him after seeing him distributing Falun Gong booklets in a subdivision through surveillance cameras. 

Mr. Li was later taken to the Daxing Detention Center. He held a hunger strike for three days to protest the persecution.

He appeared in Daxing District Court twice, on November 10 and December 10, 2020, before being sentenced to 3.5 years with 10,000 yuan fine. He has appealed the verdict.