On the afternoon of October 20, Zhang Fengying, a citizen from Zibo, Shandong Province, and her husband Hu Zhengqiu were assaulted and kidnapped at a restaurant in the Dongcheng District of Beijing, with the two of them later separated and taken away. It is known that Hu Zhengqiu has been detained, while Zhang Fengying was brutally beaten by the kidnappers and left abandoned at a small store in Zhangjiadian, Zibo city.
Zhang Fengying is a private entrepreneur in Zichuan District, Zibo City, Shandong Province. Due to collusion between Zichuan District Court and others, her factory worth nearly tens of millions was illegally dismantled and her assets were plundered. She filed a complaint against Zichuan District Judge Li Chunyi for alleged organized robbery, which led to retaliation from the local government. In 2021, she was sentenced to three years in prison. Hu Zhengqiu has been advocating for justice for Zhang Fengying in Beijing and has also become a target of suppression by the authorities.
Recently, Zhang Fengying publicly livestreamed her search for eyewitnesses who recorded videos at the scene on the day of the incident at a restaurant in Beijing. She requested kind-hearted individuals to provide evidence that could be used to report to the police and for investigation purposes.
On the evening of October 20, Zhang Fengying and Hu Zhengqiu had just finished eating at the Ba Wang Beef Noodle House in Beijing’s Shazikou when suddenly a group of people rushed over and kidnapped them into a vehicle within about 2 minutes. Zhang Fengying screamed for help, and four people kidnapped her into another vehicle, forcibly taking her phone and ID. She saw several passersby recording videos in the vehicle, and the kidnappers mentioned that someone was recording them, prompting them to leave quickly. They covered Zhang Fengying’s mouth to prevent her from screaming.
Zhang Fengying said, “The kidnappers said, ‘Behave yourself, today is the day to kill you, along with your husband.'”
In the vehicle, the other three individuals punched, kicked, and slapped Zhang Fengying. She was beaten to the point of passing out from the injuries, not knowing how long it took for her to regain consciousness. Along the way, she vaguely knew that the kidnappers changed cars and personnel. They picked up another woman along the route, making a total of five individuals, four men and one woman.
During the journey, someone called and the driver would pull over to take the call. Zhang Fengying saw the driver receive a transfer of 25,000 yuan as a hiring fee, indicated by the voice being transcribed into text on the driver’s phone.
“They drove me to a strange place, dragged me out of the car. I refused to get out and demanded to go back to Beijing. I asked, ‘Where is this? I don’t know you, why do you want to kill me? I have no grievances with you, I’m 64 years old, how could you do this? Who hired you to do this?'”
“I wanted to use his phone to make a call, but he said, ‘My phone is confidential. Look, there’s a national emblem on my screen, you can’t use it. Go borrow a phone from the store.’ Then he ran away. It was already past 2 AM on the 21st.”
On October 25, Zhang Fengying learned that Hu Qiu had been detained by the police in Wuhan, his registered home. However, the family did not receive a notification.
On October 23, a message was left for Hu Zhengqiu by a reporter from Da Ji Yuan, but there was no response.
At 8:30 PM on October 23, Zhang Fengying returned to the Yongwai Police Station in Dongcheng District of Beijing to report the case. However, after waiting from morning until 9 PM without the police taking her statement, and with her injured body exhausted from the day, she had to return home to catch the last bus and planned to come back the next day. She lamented, “It’s so difficult for ordinary people!”
That night, Zhang Fengying’s friend called the Yongwai Police Station to explain the situation and to confirm that a statement would be taken the next morning. However, the Beijing police used “government action” as an excuse, stating that they could not handle the case and issued a notice of “non-filing.”
A legal professional, Ms. Ding, commented on the Zhang Fengying case in her public account “Minxin Weiyu.” The Yongwai Police Station of the Dongcheng Branch of the Beijing Public Security Bureau claimed it was a government action and issued the notice of non-filing stating that the case “does not fall within the jurisdiction of the public security organs,” sparking various legal reflections.
She emphasized, “According to Article 6 of the Police Law, public security organs bear the core function of ‘preventing, stopping, and investigating illegal and criminal activities.’ As a district-level public security organ in Beijing, the duties of the Dongcheng branch specifically include criminal investigation, public security jurisdiction, and consistency of powers and responsibilities. Even if the personnel involved are government employees, the public security organs must exercise their investigation powers. In the case of Zhang Fengying, the Dongcheng branch must strictly follow the Police Law, Criminal Procedure Law, and other laws and regulations, perform investigative duties in accordance with the law, not avoid investigation due to the special identity of the persons involved, and not refuse to file the case on the grounds of ‘government action.’ When citizens encounter similar violations, they can use statutory means such as administrative review, administrative litigation to protect their rights, and concurrently apply for case supervision from supervisory and procuratorial organs to ensure the realization of judicial justice.”