Illegal Detention · Full chronicle and history

Yin Xu'an, a petitioner from Hubei who has been missing for over a year, has reportedly been detained by authorities in a black psychiatric hospital. His need for medical treatment for hypertension has been replaced by indefinite detention, forcing him to handwrite a plea for help to survive. Outsiders are calling on the Huangshi municipal government to immediately cease restrictions on his personal freedom and medical access.

[Follow-up · November 12, 2026] X user Teacher Li Is Not Your Teacher posted a message calling on the public to pay attention to Yin Xu'an, though the post did not disclose his specific situation or the reasons for his detention.

Recently, several railway photography enthusiasts were taken away by local personnel while filming train operations near the perimeter fence of Yuding Station in Jiangsu. They were accused of espionage, their mobile phones were confiscated for data extraction, and they were ordered to delete their photos. They were released after being detained for over 48 hours, during which no written documentation was provided, and their phones were not returned.

Hong Youcheng, 32, worked in research and development at Nanjing Wandes Environmental Protection Technology Co., Ltd. He says that after a dispute with the company over work injuries and overtime, his computer, phone and identification documents were taken away, and that in 2024 and 2026 he was twice sent to a psychiatric hospital, staying a total of about eleven months. Over the years, he repeatedly reported the matter to the police and filed lawsuits, but none were accepted.

On October 14, Beijing rights defender Zhao Yonghong and her parents, both in their eighties, were confined in their home for two days by the Enjizhuang Police Station without food. In the middle of the night they opened a window to call for help and called the police, but were stopped by the officers.

According to reports, a North Korean hacker in China was captured by Chinese authorities while traveling from Inner Mongolia to Mongolia. After being interrogated for about six months, he was handed over to the North Korean Consulate General in Shenyang and then transferred to the embassy in Beijing, where he was held underground for about a year. In 2023, he was wrapped in a full-body plaster cast disguised as a patient and put on a flight to Pyongyang, and he is reportedly dead in North Korea.

The wife of ethnic Chinese American seismologist Chen Youlin, who has been detained in China for nearly two years, stated that the White House has assured her Trump will demand her husband's release during his meeting with Xi Jinping this week.

An article reported that Bian Yuye, former chairman of Jiangsu Dafeng Rural Commercial Bank, was handcuffed behind her back and forced to slap herself over 800 times during her 168-day detention, losing over 30 kilograms. Her infant daughter, who was breastfeeding, was also detained. The article was subsequently deleted.

On September 17, volunteer Shangguan Zhengyi exposed that a disabled man in Huguan County, Changzhi City, Shanxi Province, had been illegally held by a foreman and forced to perform hard labor at a cattle farm for over 30 years. The man claims to be from Henan, and his wages were withheld by the foreman, who claimed the man was "picked up." After Shangguan Zhengyi reported the case to the police, local authorities failed to respond within 25 minutes. The man's identity and the details of his confinement are still under investigation.

Xie Weiyaxing, wife of US scholar Mingen who is illegally detained by China, revealed that US consular officials visited Mingen for the fourth time on September 15. He was in good spirits and earnestly requested President Trump to raise this case at the summit.

U.S. consular officials have conducted a fourth visit to the detained scholar Min Xin. It is reported that he is in good spirits and is striving to maintain his health.

According to prosecutors' confirmation to the family members, the Shaoyang County Procuratorate issued a Notice to Correct Illegalities to the court twice in 2026 regarding Zheng Shuai's prolonged detention; the family members have not yet received the notice, and the court replied that it is still "under internal study."

Bian Yuye recalled that while he was held in detention he was handcuffed behind his back, subjected to freezing punishment in low temperatures, deprived of sleep and subjected to other restrictions, and was also ordered to slap himself hard in the face, with a single instance reaching more than 800 slaps. His defense lawyer questioned the way evidence was obtained during the trial and requested the complete interrogation footage.

The Scholars at Risk Network released an open letter co-signed by scholars, calling attention to the detention in China of Burmese-American scholar Min Hsin after he traveled to Yunnan to take part in an academic activity, and urging that efforts be made to secure his release.

The U.S. State Department listed Chen Youlin and Min Zin as wrongfully detained Americans; Chen Youlin was detained in China in November 2024, Min Zin was detained on June 3, 2026, and the latter was added to the list on August 27.

The U.S. Department of State formally determined on August 20 that Burmese-American citizen Min Htin is wrongfully detained in China and called for his immediate release.

The U.S. Department of State has officially determined that Min Zin, a Burmese-American citizen and founder of the Institute for Strategy and Policy-Myanmar, is being illegally detained in Yunnan, China, and has called on the Chinese side to release him immediately.

U.S. consular officials visited detained scholar Min Xin on August 12 and had a brief conversation lasting about 15 minutes.

Lawyer Hou Zhiyuan, while attending the trial of lawyer Wang Qing for alleged fraud, intervened in a dispute between a family member and the police, and was taken by the police to the detention room's steel cage for 20 minutes, during which he experienced discomfort.

Pastor Kim Myeong-il of Beijing Xi'an Church was released on July 3 after being detained by the Chinese government for nearly ten months, and subsequently traveled to the United States to reunite with his family.

The Japanese entrepreneur said the family members were interrogated separately and detained for 7 days, and were asked to sign a "Certificate of Restoration of Chinese Nationality," after which they recorded a televised confession.

In June 2026, a railway enthusiast uploader was called a "spy" by company employees while filming narrow-gauge trains in an industrial and mining area and reported to the police; after the officers arrived, they took him to the police station and detained him for several hours of investigation, releasing him only after a full search of his photography and electronic equipment.

Scholar Minsin went missing after arriving in China. Family members later confirmed that he was detained in China, and the U.S. Consulate issued a formal notification on June 5.

According to information released by the U.S. House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party on October 10, 2026, CCP authorities illegally detained U.S. citizen Min Zin on June 3, 2026. During his detention, the authorities denied him access to a lawyer and cut off his direct contact with his family. The committee stated that it will remain committed to working for the release of Min Zin and other Americans held by the CCP.

On May 26, 2026, private entrepreneur Liu Shuhong of Xiangyang, Hubei, publicly accused the Nanzhang County government online of having unlawfully detained him and his wife for 666 days under the pretext of a restructuring, forcibly seizing enterprise assets worth over 100 million yuan registered under his name, and saddling him with enormous debts.

In March 2026, 21-year-old female college student Suling in Beijing was deceived by her family because of her relationship and escorted to a correction facility in Sanmenxia, Henan, where her personal freedom was restricted for 11 days. She was later freed after her boyfriend searched for her across provinces, and the police declined to file a case on the grounds that no crime had occurred.

On December 22, 2024, the Nanchang police in Jiangxi and the subdistrict office issued a statement saying that, in response to an online dispute, they had lawfully sent Li Yixue, a party who had repeatedly pursued rights defense, to a hospital for psychiatric treatment, once again sparking controversy over being "diagnosed as mentally ill" against one's will.

A woman surnamed Bu from Jinzhong, Shanxi, who suffered from schizophrenia, went missing for 13 years and was found with a son and a daughter. Police reported that she was taken in by a resident named Zhang in Qingcheng Town after she went missing. Media reports described Zhang as an honest man, sparking outrage among netizens who pointed out that this was actually rape and illegal detention.

Hui Jian was hijacked and taken away in Daya Bay, Huizhou by Cao Dong, Zhao Bing and others impersonating police officers; his phone was handed over to others, and he was forced to delete a WeChat official account article.

Enxu said that three instructors, while he was heading to the countryside to sweep his grandmother's tomb, falsely claimed that his personal information was involved in fraud, forcibly put him in a vehicle, and sent him to Shengbo School 8 hours later.

After not being arrested due to insufficient evidence and being transferred to designated residence for residential surveillance, Xing Yanjun died in the relevant surveillance room.

Zheng Shuai, boss of Shanghai Maisi Technology, was taken away by officers from the Shaoyang County Public Security Bureau of Hunan at Hongqiao Airport. The investigators stated plainly that County Head Yin had set a target of 100 million yuan, demanding a transfer to offset local government finances.

Jiemian News and 36Kr (Times Finance) reported that Zhang Jun, the actual controller of the Fude group, made a low-profile return at the end of 2022 after being absent for several years and reshuffled the senior executives of Fude Group. No public explanation has been given as to the reasons for this or whether he faced any judicial action, and neither of these two sites can be reached from the United States either.

Wuhan citizens Huang Jingyi and Geng Caiwen were seized by local police and detained for a month for recording a 10-second "reversing" video.

Liu Xiyong was taken to Yanbian, Jilin for interrogation in a different jurisdiction. During his time in Yanbian, he was subjected to torture by the special investigation team, resulting in seven fractures to his sternum and ribs, and died of asphyxiation.

Tomorrow Holding boss Xiao Jianhua was cross-border taken back to the mainland from the Four Seasons Hotel in Hong Kong by state security (MSS) personnel, and his massive network of proxy-held and money-laundering assets began to be investigated.

Deng Guangying, a Chongqing petitioner who had spoken about the disappearances in Chongqing and the organ harvesting scandal, was arrested and repatriated after being interviewed in Beijing, and has been held at the Sanmiao Psychiatric Hospital in Hechuan District ever since.

Three days before Yang Jia was executed, Wang Jingmei, who had been held for four months, was brought by police from a psychiatric hospital in Beijing to a detention center in Shanghai to visit her son. It was the first time mother and son had met since the incident, and also the last.

On November 9, 2008, Yang Jia's aunt, Wang Jingrong, went to a psychiatric hospital under the arrangement of Beijing police to see her younger sister Wang Jingmei, who was being held there. This was the first time the family had seen Wang Jingmei since she disappeared four months earlier. She had been confined at the Compulsory Treatment Management Division of the Beijing Public Security Bureau, known externally as Ankang Hospital.

On October 20, 2008, the Shanghai High People's Court issued Criminal Ruling (2008) Hu Gao Xing Zhong Zi No. 131, rejecting Yang Jia's appeal, upholding the first-instance death sentence, and reporting it to the Supreme People's Court for review and approval. When the ruling was issued, Yang Jia's mother, Wang Jingmei, was still confined in a psychiatric hospital.

On August 17, 2008, two elderly people, Wu Dianyuan and Wang Xiuying, who had applied to petition in the Beijing Olympics protest zone because their homes were forcibly demolished, were decided to be subjected to one year of re-education through labor on the grounds of disturbing public order; on August 29, that decision was rescinded under pressure from international public opinion.

The night after the Yang Jia case occurred, his mother Wang Jingmei was first taken to the Datun Police Station in Chaoyang District, and was then sent by Shanghai and Beijing police to the Ankang Psychiatric Hospital of the Beijing Public Security Bureau in Shunyi District and forcibly detained. Her family only learned of her whereabouts four months later, and legal professionals pointed out that there was no regulatory basis whatsoever for sending her to a psychiatric hospital.

Hubei youth Sun Zhigang was sent to a custody station in Guangzhou for not carrying a temporary residence permit and was beaten to death. The incident spread rapidly across the internet and eventually led the State Council to abolish the custody and repatriation system.

During the 1989 protests, because he advocated resolving issues within the framework of democracy and the legal system, Zhao Ziyang was stripped of all his posts by Deng Xiaoping and subsequently placed under house arrest in Fuqiang Alley, Beijing, for fifteen years until his death from illness.

Ren Zhiqiu was locked up in a detention center over economic issues and was detained for 14 months in total; after his release, the ruling issued by the procuratorate stated that it "need not be deemed a crime."