On December 26 and 27, 2023, the People’s Court of Liwan District in Guangzhou held hearings over two days and collectively sentenced twenty Christians from The Church of Almighty God. The charges were for “using a cult organization to undermine the enforcement of the law.”
The sentences were as follows: Liu Ze (pseudonym) received nine years and six months in prison with a fine of 32,000 RMB; Qi Mu (pseudonym) was sentenced to seven years and three months in prison and fined 24,000 RMB; Bao Zhen (pseudonym) received seven years in prison; A Xia (pseudonym) was sentenced to six years and three months with a fine of 21,000 RMB; Xing Lian (pseudonym) received a six-year prison term with a fine of 20,000 RMB; and Cheng Si (pseudonym) was sentenced to five years and three months in prison with a fine of 17,000 RMB.
It is reported that in September 2022, Guangzhou authorities conducted a large-scale crackdown on The Church of Almighty God, arresting over 200 members. The twenty Christians who were sentenced were all among those detained on September 1 of that year.
