Jinzhou Prison Authorities Plan to Cremate the Remains of Mr. Zhang Litian to Avoid Being Held Responsible for His Death

In November 2008, Mr. Zhang Litian was beaten to death by the prison guards Cheng Jun and Zhang Baozhi and two prisoners in Jinzhou Prison, Liaoning Province. This is the third death of a Falun Gong practitioner at the same prison since Xin Tingquan was appointed prison chief. After the death of Mr. Zhang, Xin ordered the prison to fabricate a public statement that Mr. Zhang had died of a heart attack. The family of the victim asked to have legal medical experts in another city conduct an autopsy, but the prison secretly moved the victim's body to an unknown place from the crematory. They collaborated with higher legal authorities to turn down the family's request and transferred prisoners Li Yong and Liu Peiyan, who had assisted in the fatal beating, to another location. After the case was revealed to the international media, the two prisoners were transferred back to Jinzhou. Prison officials refused to issue a death certificate to the victim's family.

Mr. Zhang Litian was a resident of Laizhou City, Shandong Province. He had worked in the Precision Band Steel Factory of Chaoyang City, Liaoning Province. As a Falun Gong practitioner, he followed the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance and was recognized as a good person. After the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) started to persecute Falun Gong, he was harassed and mistreated by local police on several occasions. In April 2008 when he was in Shandong Province, he was arrested by the police from the Anti-Falun Gong Team of the Jinzhou Police Department, Liaoning Province and the Branch Police Department of the Dahe District. He was detained in the first detention centre and sentenced to five years of imprisonment in August 2008. In October he was sent to the 12th section of Jinzhou Prison. On November 17th he was cruelly beaten to death by Cheng Jun, the chief of the 20th section; Zhao Baozhi, the deputy chief; and two prisoner accomplices.

On February 5th, 2009, prison officials informed the family that autopsy on the victim had been done and the finding was that Mr. Zhang had died of a heart attack. They urged the family to go to Jinzhou City to sign for the document and have the victim's remains cremated, but they refused. The prison officials stated that, even if the family didn't come for the body, it would still be cremated. The autopsy is supposed to be carried out by higher legal authorities and the results should be issued to the family. This is not a function a prison is authorized to perform, but in the communist system, such illegal goings-on take place frequently. Because those responsible for Mr. Zhang's death carried out the autopsy, they were in a position to fabricate any excuse to account for his death.

Xin Tingquan, chief of Jinzhou Prison: 86-416-3496001 (Office), 86-416-2609999 (Home), 86-13941658888 (Mobile), 86-13941606658 (Mobile)
Cheng Jun, chief of the 20th section of Jinzhou Prison, directly responsible for Mr. Zhang's death: 86-15841600846 (Mobile) 86-416-3496878 (Office)
Zhao Baozhi, deputy chief of the 20th section of the Jinzhou Prison, directly responsible for Mr. Zhang's death: 86-13624160575(Mobile)
Yan Fei, the prison doctor who falsified the autopsy: 86-13624160422(Mobile)
Wang Guodun, chief of the Life and Health Section, who was in charge of the cremation. He informed the victim's family on February 5th, 2009, "Even if you do not come, we will still cremate the body:" 86-13624160327 (Mobile)

Related report: http://www.clearharmony.net/articles/200811/46960.html

Chinese version available at http://minghui.ca/mh/articles/2009/2/12/195312.html