On September 17, it was circulated online that the Justice Bureau of Puan County, Guizhou Province, issued a notice requiring local lawyers, when handling cases related to cracking down on organized crime, to report to the county justice bureau for study and obtain approval before they can present defense arguments that involve changing the characterization of a crime, and demanding that all law firms strictly enforce this.
Yin Jiangen, a self-media person from Zhuzhou, was arrested across provinces in August 2025 for posting criticisms of officials, including Liu Ying, the Party Secretary of Liyang Town, Hexian County, Anhui Province. On August 6, 2026, the Hexian Court sentenced him to two years and three months in prison in the first instance for the crime of picking quarrels and provoking trouble. Yin Jiangen disagreed and filed an appeal.
The influencer "Tietou" (Dong Guangming) was sentenced to eight years in prison by the Binjiang Court in Hangzhou, Zhejiang, for organizing a team to expose social darkness, including scams involving elderly health products and shortchanging at seafood markets. His team members were also sentenced. The official reason given was "extortion," but the video argues this is a fabricated charge aimed at suppressing those who reveal the truth.
Rights campaigner Xu Zhiyong has been on a hunger strike for 40 days in protest against Lunan Prison depriving him of his right to communicate with his fiancée Li Qiaochu. Currently, Xu Zhiyong cannot meet with his lawyers, making it difficult for the outside world to know his specific physical condition.