(Minghui.org) A 73-year-old woman in Chongqing was sentenced to 3.5 years in prison and fined 6,000 yuan for refusing to renounce Falun Gong, a spiritual discipline being persecuted by the Chinese communist regime.
Ms. Ye Wenxiu was arrested on June 21, 2017 after she tried to tell Lu Anxiang, a local street committee staff member, about the persecution of Falun Gong. Lu grabbed Ms. Ye and called in two fellow staff members, Liu Ying and Xu Shihui. The trio then took Ms. Ye to Lijiatuo Police Station.
The police body searched Ms. Ye before going to her home to confiscate her personal belongings. The next day, they announced that she would be subjected to six months of house arrest, to be administered by Tuqiao Police Station.
Ms. Ye was indicted by Banan District Procuratorate on September 20, 2017 and appeared in Banan District Court on April 27, 2018. She didn't have a lawyer and testified in her own defense, but the presiding judge cut her off before she had a chance to finish talking. He sentenced her to prison on July 11.
Ms. Ye had been given bail after her house arrest term expired, and she is currently not in custody due to her health. It is unclear when she will be admitted to prison.
This is not the first time that Ms. Ye has been sentenced to prison for her faith. She was given 3 years on February 12, 2004 and 1.5 years on December 12, 2011.
