(Minghui.org) The police started arresting many Falun Gong practitioners in Yilan County, Heilongjiang Province and neighboring areas in late March 2013. Over 50 practitioners have been arrested and their current places of detention is still unknown. The police have continued to arrest Falun Gong practitioners as of April 3. In addition, the police staked out the residences of practitioners to catch them when they came out or returned. The police claimed they were under the orders of Wang Xiankui, the governor of Heilongjiang Province.

The first round of arrests took place in the evening on March 29. The police smashed the doors and entered the homes of Falun Gong practitioners by force. "Police!", they shouted--yet no one was in police uniform or showed a badge or warrant. They did not even inform the victims why they broke into their homes, just immediately started confiscating personal property and arresting the practitioners.

The police from Yilan County and Fangzheng County arrested practitioners in Yilan County, Dalianhe Town, Sandaogang Town, Daotaiqiao Town, and Tuanshanzi Township based on a list.

Ms. Jiang Lianying, 69, is a Falun Gong practitioner from Tuanshanzi Township. It is alleged that she was transferred to Harbin on April 1 after she was arrested on March 29. Her mother, who is over 100 years old and her husband who suffers from severe illness, were left home without anyone caring for them. Her mother was so worried that she didn't eat for three days. So far six Falun Gong practitioners from Tuanshanzi Township have been arrested.

Ms. Zhang was arrested on March 29 when she returned home after 10 p.m. The police smashed the glass on the door, confiscated two computers, three printers, one DVD-burner, three mobile phones, and many personal belongings. They stuffed two mini-vans full of her personal belongings. Her husband, who does not practice Falun Gong, was badly beaten, arrested and interrogated. He was released the next day.

The police confiscated a PC from the home of Ms. Qiu Yuqing, a practitioner in Heilongjiang Province.

After Mr. Sun Wenfu, a Falun Gong practitioner from Shahezi Village, Fangzheng County, was arrested on March 29, the police from Fangzheng Domestic Security Team and Fangzheng Police Department ransacked his home and looted his daughter's dowry of 10,000 yuan. They also arrested his daughter Sun Lili, even though she was scheduled to get married on April 6.

As of April 3, the police continued to stake out the homes of Mr. Zhang Guodong and Mr. Zhang Lizhu. They repeatedly knocked on their doors and interrupted the order and peace of their neighbors.

So far the following Falun Gong practitioners have been arrested: Mr. Mo Zhikui, Ms. Fei Shuqin, Mr. Zuo Zhenqi, Ms. Chen Yan, Mr. Xu Feng, Ms. Ni Chunyan, Ms. Zhang Jingjuan, Ms. Du Jing, Ms. Wu Yingqiu, Ms. Yao Yulian, Mr. Tang Lifei, Mr. Li Dapeng, Ms. Li Yanyan, Mr. Shi Rongxian, Ms. Zhang Jiuhui, Ms. Duan Shuyan, Mr. Xing Laojiu, Mr. Qiu Yuqin, Mr. Zheng Chen, Mr. Wang Jiarong, Ms. Jiang Lianying, Ms. Hou Guixiang, Ms. Lu Fengyun, Mr. Wang Haifeng, and his mother and aunt.

Mr. Shi Rongxian, Ms. Zhang Jiuhui, Mr. Xing Laojiu, Ms. Hou Guixiang, Mr. Wang Haifeng, and his mother and aunt have been released. Ms. Fei Shuqin, Mr. Li Dapeng, and Ms. Li Yanyan are currently held in Yilan County Detention Center. Ms. Fei Shuqin have been sent to ER twice during police custody. At least 18 practitioners have been transferred to Harbin City Detention Center.

The arrested Falun Gong practitioners from other counties include:

Boli County: Mr. Zhang Jinku and Mr. Liu Fengcheng

Tonghe County: Mr. Min Fangjun, Ms. Huang Fengyun, Mr. Zhang Xiaolin, Mr. Xu Huai'an, Mr. Mu Zhaojun, Ms. Sui and Mr. Zhang

Fangzheng County: Ms. Sun Lili, Mr. Sun Chunlie, Mr. Sun Wenfu, Ms. Li Dongmei, Ms. Liu Jinying, Mr. Wang Zijun (no longer practicing Falun Gong) and Mr. Bo Guiyou (no longer practicing Falun Gong)

Some practitioners were forced to flee their homes and took to hiding to avoid being arrested. Other practitioners have been severely harassed by the police.

The police ransacked Ms. Wang Hongzhen's home in Shahezi on the evening of March 29. They confiscated her Falun Gong books and destroyed her home satellite dish. Ms. Wang had congenital heart disease, which was cured by Falun Gong. Yet when the police broke into her home, she was so shocked that she had a heart attack.

The police harassed Mr. Zhai Houcheng on the evening of March 29. He was once bitten by a deadly flying insect. He survived because he practices Falun Gong, but has since had difficulty walking. His eyes, face, head, limbs and torso tremble involuntarily,and he has difficulty with speech. He is unable to work. Nevertheless, the police harassed him at his home.

The police also harassed Mr. Yu Lianhe and Ms. Zhang Limei at their homes on the same evening. They harassed Ms. Li Hongmei and Mr. Yu Lianhe again a few days later.

The same evening the police attempted to arrest Ms. Li Xiangqin at her home, but she escaped.

The police attempted to arrest Mr. Yu Lianhe on the evening of April 1 and 2, but he was not home.

None of the family of the arrested practitioners received any notice.

It is alleged that Wang Xiankui, governor of Heilongjiang Province, saw many banners with messages such as "Falun Gong is good" and "Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good" when he toured the province. He was outraged and ordered an investigation. The police started to use advanced technology to follow and track Falun Gong practitioners.

The Heilongjiang Province Public Security Bureau (PSB), Harbin City 610 Office, and Harbin Police Department, arrived in Yilan County many days before the massive arrests. They arrested a practitioner from Fangzheng County before the massive arrests. They tortured him in the hope of finding out the source of those banners. The director of technology at the Heilongjiang Province Public Security Bureau orchestrated the arrests in person. They used GPS tracking to track practitioners' mobile phones. For those without a mobile phone, they staked out their homes. They arrested over 30 practitioners on the evening of March 29 and made additional arrests after that. The majority of the arrested practitioners are currently detained in Yilan County Detention Center. 15 practitioners have been transferred to Harbin. Eight have been transferred to Yaziquan Detention Center. Seven are detained in the detention center behind the Harbin Police Hospital. Some were to be detained for 15 days, but some face six months in prison.