(Minghui.org) A Huangshi City, Hubei Province, man serving a seven-year prison sentence has been denied visits from his sister for the past four years, despite her repeated requests.

Mr. Chen Dicai, 41, was arrested on July 3, 2019, and sentenced to seven years with a 30,000-yuan fine on September 22, 2020. For the past four years, his sister has repeatedly gone to Fanjiatai Prison but was never allowed to see him. The guards cited pandemic control as an excuse.

The prison continued to deny her visitation requests even after the pandemic restrictions were lifted late last year. The excuse given was that Mr. Chen stubbornly refused to renounce Falun Gong. His sister recently learned from an insider that Mr. Chen is experiencing some liver condition and other ailments. She is very worried about him.

Arrest and Sentencing

Mr. Chen received a call from his sister’s daughter on the evening of July 3, 2019. His niece was seeking help from him because her father, who had lived with his mistress for six years, was beating her mother.

Mr. Chen rushed to his sister’s home. She was in bed, unable to move. Her husband had pulled out some of her hair, which Mr. Chen saw scattered on the floor.

Mr. Chen condemned his brother-in-law, Li Shengshui, for beating his sister. Li called the police and reported Mr. Chen for practicing Falun Gong. The police came at around 11 p.m. and took Mr. Chen and his sister’s family to the police station.

They searched Mr. Chen, found information about Falun Gong on him, and reported him to their supervisor at the Domestic Security Division in charge of persecuting Falun Gong.

Mr. Chen was held at a hotel near the police station for three days. The police interrogated him around the clock, deprived him of sleep, and didn’t give him anything to eat or drink.

Torture illustration: Handcuffed behind the back

Officer Ni Ge suspended Mr. Chen from a window frame, with his arms pulled up behind his back. The officer also tied up his hands behind his back and inserted water bottles between his hands and back to increase the pain.

Unable to bear the torture, Mr. Chen was forced to take the officers to search his residence on July 6. He was given 15 days of administrative detention the next day and put in criminal detention on July 22. The police fabricated evidence and falsely accused him of having 20 printers and several flash drives that had information about Falun Gong.

Mr. Chen was tried by the Xisaishan Court through a video conference on September 22, 2020. His lawyer entered a not guilty plea for him. The judge sentenced him to seven years at the end of the trial.

Mr. Chen appealed with the Huangshi City Intermediate Court, which ruled on December 4, 2020 to uphold his original verdict and also fine him 30,000 yuan.

Related report:

Hubei Man Reported by His Brother-in-law for Practicing Falun Gong, Sentenced to Seven Years