Extortion

  • Tianjin Police Torture Ms. Shao Kunhua to Mental Disorder, Then Extort Money from Her Family

    Ms. Shao Kunhua, a Falun Gong practitioner, was arrested in 2001 when she went to Beijing to appeal. She lost consciousness after the police from Tianjin force-fed her with unknown drugs. She woke up experiencing a mental disorder, and her family members were extorted out of more than 10,000 yuan. A year later, Shao Kunhua slowly recovered from the torture and regained her health by reading Falun Gong books and doing the exercises.
  • After Extorting Thousands of Yuan from Family Members, Police in Yushu City Refuse to Release a 60-Year-Old Practitioner

    On November 25th, when Falun Gong practitioner Ms. Zhang Yujie, almost 60 years old, was talking with an acquaintance in front of the No. 2 High School, three police arrested her. They took her to the domestic security unit and then to a detention centre. Then they ransacked her home. Ms. Zhang's family is not wealthy, but to gain her release and stop the police from taking her to a forced labour camp, they handed over 6,000 yuan. The domestic security unit head, Zhang Deqing, pocketed 5,000 yuan.
  • 650,000 Yuan in Cash Taken after Mrs. Zhang Yueqin and Four Members of her Family Detained in Lubei Police Department in Tangshan City

    On July 10th, 2008, police officer Chen Hong from the Lubei Police Department and other officers broke into Mrs. Zhang Yueqin's home. They damaged the lock but still couldn't open the door. They then mobilized two fire engines and used an auto-lift ladder to climb to the sixth floor and break in through two windows. They entered through those windows and arrested Mrs. Zhang and her husband. The police searched the house without showing a warrant and confiscated valuables. They also stole over 650,000 yuan (USD$95,000) that Mrs. Zhang's eldest daughter had borrowed to invest in a business with partners.
  • Mr. Xue Chaoyang and His Wife from Xiao County, Anhui Province, Held in Longshanzi Detention Centre

    Mr. Xue Chaoyang and his wife, Ms. Sun Xuanjun, both Falun Gong practitioners were detained at the Longshanzi Detention Centre in Xiao County. The police extorted money from the family. His family now has have no source of income and their life is very difficult. The authorities refused to allow his parents to see Mr. Xue. When Mr. Xue's mother missed him so much that she went to the Xiao County Police Department to inquire about him, Officer Li Wangang pounded on the table to frighten her and drove her off.
  • 610 Office in Suizhou City Continues to Harass and Extort Money from Ms. Qiu Lilan

    On November 4th, 2008, manager Wu, who is in charge of persecuting Falun Gong practitioners at the Mother and Childcare Hospital went to talk to practitioner Ms. Qiu Lilan, a retired doctor from the same hospital. Ms. Qiu explained to him that due to the long term persecution that she suffered at the hands of the local 610 Office, her health had slowly deteriorated, forcing her to undergo surgery in September 2008. As a result, she was living at her relative's home so she could get the personal care she needed. When the local "610 Office" found about this, they went to Ms. Qiu's hospital work unit and extorted several thousand yuan from them. They also took away Ms. Qiu's November retirement pension of more than 1000 yuan, leaving her with only 300 yuan to live on.
  • Victims' Family Members Sue the Police for Stealing 600,000 Yuan in Cash

    On July 10th, 2008, police broke into the home of Falun Gong practitioners He Yixing and Zhang Yueqin, a married couple. Using two fire department vehicles with ladders, they broke the balcony glass to enter the home and arrested the couple. They also confiscated a large amount of personal belongings. Later, the police arrested Zhang Yueqin's daughter He Yan and daughter-in-law Sun Fengli from their work places. The police stole many items from Zhang Yueqin's family, including a van, valuables and 600,000 yuan in cash. The cash comprises the funds that Zhang Yueqin's first daughter borrowed to open a business and the funds for He Yixing and his wife's retirement. Zhang Yueqin's elder brother has sued police officer Chen Hong and others from the Lubei Police Department for their crimes.
  • Police Arrest and Terrorize Seven Older Women, Extort Large Sums of Money

    On May 12th, 2008, police surrounded the home of Huangjia Village practitioner Ms. Li Yongxin. Using the excuse of "ensuring security for the Olympics," the police dispersed the villagers who gathered after hearing the news, broke into the home, ransacked it, and arrested Ms. Li Yongxin and six other older women practitioners. Chinese Communist Party (CCP) agents told the family members of each practitioner that they might be freed after two weeks and then proceeded to extort money from them. On May 19th, Ms. Li Yongxin and Ms. Zhao Cuizhi were taken to Masanjia Forced Labour Camp in Shenyang City.
  • 600,000 Yuan in Cash Taken After Family of Five Detained

    According to inside sources, nearly 5000 Falun Gong practitioners were arrested and persecuted in Liaoning Province in July this year. In Tangshan City, Hebei Province, a family of five Falun Gong practitioners, Ms. Zhang Yueqing, husband Mr. He Yixing, their two daughters and one son-in-law, were recently arrested. Their homes were ransacked and their property and cash totalling over 600,000 yuan were confiscated. A happy and harmonious family was torn apart due to the persecution.
  • The Xingtai Police and 610 Office Routinely Impose Heavy Fines on Falun Gong Practitioners

    For nine years, heavy fines have been routinely used by the police and 610 Office agents in Xingtai, Hebei Province as just one of the means to persecute Falun Gong practitioners. Wu Shuqi, the head of this local National Security Brigade office, pointed at his luxury car and boasted in public, "This vehicle was obtained by soliciting money". He had hired people to spy on Falun Gong practitioners. He often tracks practitioners and brings a camera with him when searching the homes of practitioners who are prosperous. Whenever he finds Falun Gong books and leaflets exposing the persecution of Falun Gong, he extorts heavy fines. In 2007 alone, he extorted heavy fines from over ten practitioners.
  • The Persecution of Mr. Wu Wenfeng, a Blind Practitioner from Yichun City, Heilongjiang Province

    Mr. Wu Wenfeng, a blind Falun Gong practitioner, was arrested in June 2008 at an elderly people's centre by police from the Xinjieji Police Station on June 5th, 2008. Since the Chinese Communist Party launched the persecution of Falun Gong in 1999, Mr. Wu has also been often persecuted. On September 22nd, 2003, Mr. Wu was transferred to Dongsheng elderly people's centre where he was detained and closely monitored. One policeman from the 610 Office told him, "We will lock you up here until you die."
  • Two Cases of Forced Labour and Extortion in Shenzhou City, Hebei Province

    Falun Gong practitioner Ms. Bai Ruixian, 48, distributed leaflets exposing the persecution of Falun Gong to people at the train station. Police arrested her and tried to force her to make a so-called "confession" to get Ms. Bai to tell them the source of the leaflets. When she refused some of the police officers beat her about the face and shocked the rest of her body using electric batons. She was also forced to sit on an "iron chair". At night, police officers put a mask on her head and put her in a car. After driving a long distance, they pulled her out off the car and pulled the mask off. They placed her in front of a pit and threatened her, "Even if we bury you alive today, no one will ever know."
  • Cases of Practitioners Suffering Abuse at the Hands of Baoqing County Heilongjiang Province Police Department Officials

    Xie Yuntong, a 45-year-old male and chief of the Politics and Security Section of the Police Department in Baoqing Country, Shuangyashan City, Heilongjiang Province, has been actively involved in extorting huge sums of money from Falun Gong practitioners since he took office. He has also been actively persecuting practitioners. On September 6th, 2006, practitioner couple Mr. Zhang Zhaohua and Ms. Yuan Meirong, were arrested by police and taken to the detention centre. Mr. Zhang was detained for nearly seven weeks. A prison guard severely beat him with a plastic tube about one inch in diameter. Inmates forcibly bathed him with cold water. He had 15,000 yuan extorted from him before he was released. Ms. Yuan was detained for six days and had 1300 yuan extorted from her before she was released.
  • Great Amount of Money Extorted from Falun Gong Practitioners in Liaoning Province

    On August 1st, 2007, police from the Lingyuan City Department, arrested 42 Falun Dafa practitioners in Beilu Towship, Lingyuan City. Ms. Hu Yanrong died during the process of being arrested. Ms. Li Cuizhi was tortured so badly she developed a mental disorder. Nine of these practitioners were sentenced. Five practitioners were taken to the notorious Masanjia Forced Labour Camp. Among these practitioners, a great amount of money was extorted from twenty four of them and their families.
  • Communist Agents from Guangan City, Sichuan Province Arrested and Sentenced Falun Gong Practitioners to Prison and Forced Labour

    In November 2006, more than 20 police officers raided a house and arrested three practitioners. The police confiscated four notebook computers, printers, a CD copying machine, printing materials, 40,000 yuan in cash, and a bank passbook worth over 100,000 yuan. They kept the computers and cash for themselves. They also attempted to force the practitioners to reveal the code for the bank passbook, but failed. Following Ms. Ding Yuerong and Mr. Zeng Geping's arrest, the police feared exposure of their crimes. They hid the practitioners in a secret location in Huarong City for a long time. They also did this to try to extort a confession. Recently, Guangan City officials secretly sentenced Mr. Zeng Geping and Xiang Lin to seven years in prison and Ms. Ding Yuerong to six years in prison.
  • Guangzhou City Police Confiscate Ms. Zhou Lianzhang's Belongings Worth Ten Thousand Yuan

    On October 31st, 2007, several local officials and four or five policemen broke down the door and handcuffed Ms. Zhou Lianzhang, a 74-year-old Falun Gong practitioner. They ransacked boxes and chests, willfully causing damage to things and making a mess. According to incomplete figures, they confiscated Ms. Zhou's treasured Falun Gong books, more than two thousand yuan cash, and some gold jewellery. These items were worth ten thousand yuan (almost 700 British pounds), and the invaders did not issue a list of items they took away