Son Recounts Mother's Death Two Weeks After Arrest, Father Still Detained

Falun Gong practitioner Ms. Yu Baofang passed away the day police sent her to the hospital on July 17, 2017. Only two weeks before, she, her husband, and son had been arrested and detained for their spiritual belief.

According to her son, Mr. Wang Yu, who was allowed to see her body about an hour after she passed away, Ms. Yu was kept in an intensive care unit, connected to a breathing machine. The police allowed Mr. Wang to stay with her body for a few minutes before dragging him out of the room and taking him back to the detention centre.

Mr. Wang was released on July 18 shortly after he met with his father, Mr. Wang Dianguo, at Anshan No. 2 Detention Centre. Suspecting foul play in his mother's sudden death, both Mr. Wang and his father refused an autopsy on Ms. Yu's body to determine the cause of death.

The older Mr. Wang was kept in detention and not allowed to make arrangements for his wife’s funeral. His arrest was approved on August 8, 2017.

The officer in charge of Ms. Yu's case refused to accept any responsibility for her death, claiming they did their duty to send her to the hospital for medical treatment.

“In just two weeks, I lost my mum and my family was broken,” said Mr. Wang Yu. Below is Mr. Wang Yu's account of this family tragedy.

Arrest and Home Ransacking
A group of officers broke into our home on July 4, 2017. The officers ordered me, my parents, and another Falun Gong practitioner who was visiting to remain seated on the couch in the living room, then they began to search our home.

None of the officers showed their police badge or a proper search warrant. When I told them that it was illegal for them to ransack our home, they didn't listen and continued to search, leaving a mess.

With electric batons in their hands, two armed officers forced handcuffs onto us. When my father and I resisted, they pressed me to the ground and handcuffed me from the back. They did the same to my father. Both of us had great pain in our wrists.

When the police brought us to the police station, a few officers remained at our home to continue going through our home.

Interrogation
The four of us were detained separately at the police station. My father and I were both shackled to a chair in a room by ourselves. My mum and the other practitioner were detained in a metal cage.

We remained under arrest as night came and the police began to interrogate me when I felt sleepy. One officer grabbed my hair and pulled my head backward when I refused to answer their questions. I had difficulty breathing. Two officers also stomped on my feet and tried to force me to talk.

They interrogated me a second time after I was transferred to the detention centre. They manipulated the interrogation record and forced me to sign my name on it.

Transferred to Detention Centre
On the afternoon following our arrests, the police finally gave the four of us a piece of bread and a bottle of water.

Shortly after that, we were taken to An'shan No. 2 Detention Centre for physical examinations. My father remained there, and my mum was transferred to An'shan Women's Detention Centre. I and the other practitioner were taken to An'shan Detention Centre. I was given 15 days of detention.

While we were detained, the police issued a detention notice for my parents and gave it to my aunt. When my aunt requested a detention notice for me, the police told her, “We don't have one.” The detention centre staff also refused to allow my aunt to visit me.

My Mum's Sudden Death
On the afternoon of July 17, an officer told me that my mum had been sent to the hospital. The officer asked for family contact information, so I gave her my aunt's phone number and she left.

After a while, another three officers brought me to An'shan City Changda Hospital.

There I saw my mum lying on a bed in the intensive care unit. Her face was grey and a tube from the breathing machine was connected to her neck.

A doctor said to me, “Your mum's heart has stopped beating and her pupils are enlarging.” The doctor then opened my mum’s eyes and showed me her enlarged pupils.

I wanted to stay longer. I wanted to hold her hands. This would be my last chance to hold her hands, but the police didn't let me. They forcibly took me out of the room. I only stayed there for a few minutes.

Outside the room, I asked the doctor what happened to my mum. She said that my mum was brought to the hospital that morning. Her condition suddenly became critical around 2:50 p.m. and she was sent to the intensive care unit.

Medical staff worked to resuscitate her for about 40 minutes, but she passed away around 3:30 p.m. I asked the doctor what caused my mom’s death. She said she didn't know and she could only tell me that she died after her heart stopped beating.

After I was taken back to the detention centre, I asked to meet with my father.

During the meeting with my father, the police officer in charge of my mom's case said that my mum died from diabetes. We both questioned this. If my mum had serious health issues, why would the detention centre accept her without a word? Why had they only informed us an hour after her death and not before or during her emergency treatment?

We asked to see the video of my mum during her detention. The police only showed us the footage of her first two days and last two days there. We had no knowledge of what happened to her in between those days.

Shortly after I met with my father, I was released.

Returned to a Ransacked, Broken Home
I returned home alone, only to find the front door broken and the lock missing. The door was shut tight and I was unable to open it.

I called my aunt for help. She found a locksmith to fix the lock and opened the door.

We entered the room to find a great mess. The police had taken many items. The sofa was cut open and the beds were dishevelled. They had taken our keys and cash, including those in my father's trousers and my mom's purse.

A very bad odour filled the home. I discovered that the police had unplugged our refrigerator and left the door open. All of the food had rotted; maggots were on the food and all over the floor.

Perpetrators' contact information:
Chang Yongchun (常永春), officer at Yongle Police Station in Tiexi District: +86-15698905851Wang Dengke (王登科), head of Domestic Security Division in Tiexi District: +86-13904200240 (Mobile), +86-15698905677 (Mobile), +86-412-8674699 (Office), +86-412-5532953 (Home)Zhao Hongbo (赵洪波), head of An'shan Women's Detention Centre: +86- 15698902199 (Mobile), +86-412-2962559 (Office)