(Minghui.org) A 60-year-old resident of Jiaohe City, Jilin Province, was recently sentenced to seven years in prison for not giving up his faith in Falun Gong.

Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, is a mind-body discipline that has been persecuted by the communist regime since 1999.

Mr. Li Dekuan was arrested on April 30, 2018. The police broke into his home, confiscated his Falun Gong books and 95,000 yuan in cash. He was taken to Jiaohe City Detention Center the next day.

Another Falun Gong practitioner, Ms. Liu Li, was also arrested when she went to visit Mr. Li an hour after his arrest. She was detained for 37 days before the police let her go home.

The police didn't inform Mr. Li's family of his arrest. They only found out about it when they reported his disappearance to the police.

The Procuratorate approved Mr. Li's arrest on June 6 and he stood trial around September 7.

The detention center didn't let his lawyer visit him the day before the trial. They told him to provide a certificate from the provincial 610 Office to show that he didn't practice Falun Gong himself.

Mr. Li's daughter, sister, and his sister's husband went to the courthouse to attend the trial but were not allowed inside the courtroom. It wasn't clear whether or not the judge allowed the lawyer to enter a defense for his client

Mr. Li's family was recently informed of the verdict, but it is unclear if he has yet been taken to prison.