Extortion charge rocks police
By Wang Xiang |
May 6, 2010, Thursday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
A POLICE station in northern China has faked arrest warrants to extort money from innocent people by threatening to throw them in jail, a former legal official with the station has accused.
Zhang Wenhui said she was suspended from her post at Lingshou County Public Security Bureau, Hebei Province, a year ago because she refused to cooperate with the extortion, Beijing News reported yesterday.
Zhang said the bureau chief told her to fake arrest warrants for six villagers who allegedly started a public fight in April 2009. Zhang refused and the chief let someone take her job when she returned from maternity leave, according to the report.
A police officer who investigated the fight told the newspaper that he had no idea who started it and only took the six from more than 100 villagers at the scene, whom the police assume all took part in the fight.
Lingshou police chief Zhang Qinghua forced Kang Xin, head of the county's detention house, to detain the six. An officer was quoted as saying that Zhang Qinghua had threatened to sack Kang if he refused to jail the six villagers.
Five of the six were quickly released after each paid 5,000 yuan (US$732.35) in bail. No charges were pressed against them afterwards.
But Song Shuchun, who refused to pay bail, was sentenced to one year in prison with two years on probation after he was illegally kept in custody for more than five months. He was also fined 15,000 yuan.
Song said when he was alone in his cell, officers repeatedly gave him hints that he could be set free if he paid 20,000 yuan as bail. The police told him he was certain to go to jail if his case went to court, the report said.
Song said he was put in storage rooms whenever provincial officials inspected the detention house. He said he almost had a nervous breakdown during the five months he was in prison and that he considered committing suicide.
Police chief Zhang Qinghua admitted in March that there were flaws in the paperwork in the case of the six villagers, but denied that he ordered they be arrested for the bail out money.
Zhang Qinghua said he detained them to stop the fight from escalating into a protest and said he "would do it again if anyone jeopardized stability in his jurisdiction."
Zhang Wenhui said she was suspended from her post at Lingshou County Public Security Bureau, Hebei Province, a year ago because she refused to cooperate with the extortion, Beijing News reported yesterday.
Zhang said the bureau chief told her to fake arrest warrants for six villagers who allegedly started a public fight in April 2009. Zhang refused and the chief let someone take her job when she returned from maternity leave, according to the report.
A police officer who investigated the fight told the newspaper that he had no idea who started it and only took the six from more than 100 villagers at the scene, whom the police assume all took part in the fight.
Lingshou police chief Zhang Qinghua forced Kang Xin, head of the county's detention house, to detain the six. An officer was quoted as saying that Zhang Qinghua had threatened to sack Kang if he refused to jail the six villagers.
Five of the six were quickly released after each paid 5,000 yuan (US$732.35) in bail. No charges were pressed against them afterwards.
But Song Shuchun, who refused to pay bail, was sentenced to one year in prison with two years on probation after he was illegally kept in custody for more than five months. He was also fined 15,000 yuan.
Song said when he was alone in his cell, officers repeatedly gave him hints that he could be set free if he paid 20,000 yuan as bail. The police told him he was certain to go to jail if his case went to court, the report said.
Song said he was put in storage rooms whenever provincial officials inspected the detention house. He said he almost had a nervous breakdown during the five months he was in prison and that he considered committing suicide.
Police chief Zhang Qinghua admitted in March that there were flaws in the paperwork in the case of the six villagers, but denied that he ordered they be arrested for the bail out money.
Zhang Qinghua said he detained them to stop the fight from escalating into a protest and said he "would do it again if anyone jeopardized stability in his jurisdiction."
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