(Minghui.org) A Meizhou City, Guangdong Province, resident was recently sentenced to five years and fined 50,000 yuan for his faith in Falun Gong, a spiritual discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since 1999.
Mr. Xie Hanzhu, 60, and the former deputy chief of the local energy department, was arrested at home on October 20, 2021. His Falun Gong books and some cash were confiscated.
The Meixian District Court held a hearing of Mr. Xie’s case on July 28, 2022. His lawyer entered a not-guilty plea for him. The judge sentenced him to five years with a 50,000-yuan fine on November 30, without informing his family or lawyer. He was accused of being a repeat offender, as he has been previously sentenced to 12 years for practicing Falun Gong in 2005. He is preparing to appeal the verdict.
Shortly after the onset of the persecution, Mr. Xie was terminated from his job and given two years of forced labor. The authorities refused to release him after his term expired, but held him in custody for another year.
Mr. Xie was arrested again in February 2005 and sentenced to 12 years in prison. He was first jailed at the Meizhou Prison and later transferred to the Beijiang Prison. He barely survived the torture in custody.
Mr. Xie started to do business after returning home. He was harassed twice, in August 2019 and June 2021, by the local police and residential committee staff members before being arrested and sentenced again.
Mr. Xie Hanzhu Placed Under Strict Control Again in Meizhou Prison