(Hefei, Anhui Province – July 1, 2024) The case against Pastor Zhou Songlin and Elder Ding Zhongfu of Hefei Ganquan Church, charged with suspicion of "fraud," has recently been filed in court. The defense lawyers provided a detailed legal analysis, arguing that Ding Zhongfu and Zhou Songlin did not engage in any deceptive behavior as defined by the Criminal Law of the People’s Republic of China. They contend that there was no intention to illegally possess believers' property and that no misunderstanding arose among the believers due to any actions by Ding and Zhou. The property belonged collectively to the church, not to any individual, and believers’ tithe offerings were seen as fulfilling their Christian obligations.
Hefei Ganquan Church is a house church with over twenty years of history. On November 30, 2023, 16 church members were subjected to home searches by public security without warning and taken into custody on suspicion of "fraud." Fourteen members were subsequently released or granted bail pending trial; however, Pastor Zhou Songlin and Elder Ding Zhongfu remained in detention. On May 14, 2024, the Shushan District People’s Procuratorate of Hefei City filed public prosecution against them.
The indictment states: “Since 2008, the defendants Ding Zhongfu and Zhou Songlin, without obtaining qualifications as religious personnel, established ‘Ganquan Church’ in this city. They engaged in illegal religious activities at multiple unapproved venues and organized illegal religious training.” It further claims they exploited others' faith to induce participants to pay 10% of their income as 'tithe offerings,' using these funds for various church-related expenses.
The defense argues that fraud involves obtaining property through deceptive means with an intention for illegal possession. According to them, Ding and Zhou's actions do not meet these requirements. They assert that administrative violations or internal disputes within Christianity should not be equated with criminal offenses.
They further argue that Ding and Zhou did not pretend to be registered religious personnel nor concealed their status from church members. Their roles within the church were publicly acknowledged despite not being recognized by local Christian authorities. Therefore, there was no deception regarding tithe offerings or other aspects related to property disposal.
The defense emphasizes that judicial departments must independently judge facts rather than adopt administrative agency judgments directly. They maintain that Ding and Zhou's ordination ceremonies reflect genuine religious beliefs rather than attempts at deception.
In conclusion, according to the defense lawyers' analysis under Article 266 of the Criminal Law of the People’s Republic of China, there is no basis for charging Ding Zhongfu and Zhou Songlin with fraud.
