(Minghui.org) The arrests of eight Falun Gong practitioners in Hebei Province were approved by the local Procuratorate on September 22, 2014. Their crime was being “stubborn” in their beliefs.

The arrest approvals indicate that their cases have officially entered the criminal investigation stage. If the Procuratorate accepts the cases, the next steps are trials and sentences.

The cases date back to the arrests of 42 practitioners on August 17, 2014, when they had a private gathering to share experiences in raising awareness of the persecution of Falun Gong in China.

Although most of the practitioners were released by August 18, the police tracked them down and harassed them at home, and arrested more practitioners the day after, including some of the eight practitioners whose arrests were just approved.

The eight practitioners include Ms. Li Li (李丽), Ms. Cao Yanxiang (曹彦香 or 曹延香), Ms. Zhao Xiang (赵翔), Ms. Liu Lixin (刘立新), Mr. Xu Kai (徐凯), Mr. Chang Shouxuan (常寿轩), and Mr. Hou Dongliang (侯东亮).

According to sources, Domestic Security Division police officers are collecting information and potentially trumping up charges against the illegally arrested practitioners.

Parties involved in the persecution:
Tang Guoli (唐国利), head of Cangzhou Domestic Security Division: +86-13603271866 (Cell), +86-317-5309879 (Office)Li Yi (李毅), staff member from Cangzhou Domestic Security Division: +86-13383079711(Cell)Pang Weihua (庞维华), head of Yunhe Procuratorate: +86-317-3031009 (Office), +86-317-2181088 (Home), +86-13932709999 (Cell)

(More perpetrators' contact information available in the original Chinese article.)