(Minghui.org) Mr. Ren Peng received an official copy of a guilty verdict on January 22, 2024, stating that he had been sentenced to one year and one month with a 10,000-yuan fine for his faith in Falun Gong, a mind-body practice that has been persecuted by the Chinese Communist Party since July 1999.
The verdict bore the seal of the Xiaoshan District Court in Hangzhou City, Zhejiang Province, and signatures of presiding judge Chen Rui and assistant judges Xu Liqin and Yu Caihong.
Mr. Ren, 53, took up Falun Gong in 1998. In early 2023, he moved from his hometown in Huaibin County, Henan Province, to Zhejiang Province to begin a new job at the Hanhui Technology Company in Qiantang District, Hangzhou City. Months later, on April 5, 2023, he was arrested after being reported for distributing Falun Gong informational materials near his company.
The police raided his place and confiscated his Falun Gong materials and some cash. He was put on criminal detention on April 8 and issued a formal arrest warrant on May 15.
While Mr. Ren was arrested in Qiantang District, his case was later assigned to Xiaoshan District and docketed on September 18, 2023.
The Xiaoshan District Court heard the case at an unknown date. Both Mr. Ren and his lawyer, Mr. Ren Yuanzhen, refuted the allegations against him from prosecutor Gao Xinyu of the Xiaoshan District Procuratorate. He received a copy of the verdict on January 22.
Mr. Ren is likely still held at the Xiaoshan District Detention Center at the time of writing.
Copyright © 2024 Minghui.org. All rights reserved.
