Guangxi Man Zhu Hui Dies During Trial After Alleging Torture

Guangxi Man Zhu Hui Dies During Trial After Alleging Torture

Zhu Hui, a private entrepreneur, was the third defendant in a case involving suspected organization, leadership, and participation in a gang-like organization. The scourge of torture, which can lead to wrongful convictions or even death, has once again raised concerns.

On the morning of September 2, 2026, Zhu Hui passed away.

Before his death, Zhu Hui was a private entrepreneur and the third defendant in a case involving suspected organization, leadership, and participation in a gang-like organization. During a court hearing held via video link two days before his death, Zhu Hui refuted the prosecution's allegations and alleged that he had been subjected to brutal torture.

Zhu Hui's defense lawyers, Jin Lin and Peng Ye, stated in "The Life of a Defense Lawyer" that after Zhu Hui underwent a liver transplant in January 2018, he needed to take anti-rejection medication regularly. However, during his detention and residential surveillance in June 2022, the case handlers intentionally stopped his medication and delayed his medical treatment, despite being aware of his condition and medication needs. This led to a severe deterioration of his condition, and he was eventually diagnosed with lung cancer, losing the opportunity for surgery and relying on medication and chemotherapy to sustain his life.

More severe than the stoppage of medication and delayed medical treatment was the brutal torture.

According to the accounts of the families of the defendants and court records, Zhu Hui and other suspects were subjected to torture, including but not limited to:

1. Being forced to endure cold air at 16 degrees Celsius;

1. Being deprived of sleep;

1. Being starved for an extended period, leading to severe constipation, drastic weight loss, and even organ failure, with some individuals eating discarded fruit peels from trash cans due to extreme hunger;

1. Being "bracketed" during interrogations;

1. Having toothpicks inserted into their fingernails;

1. Being forced to sit facing a wall for an extended period, resulting in buttock ulcers and suppuration.

Under such extreme physical torture and mental torment, and in a state of extreme fear and physiological collapse, multiple defendants were forced to fabricate confessions that fit the characteristics of gang-related crimes, as guided by the investigators.

In response to Zhu Hui's death, his two defense lawyers formally submitted a solemn request to the court during the morning hearing on September 2:

First, they requested that the court initiate a death investigation procedure to investigate the circumstances of Zhu Hui's death after being tortured and to hold the torturers criminally responsible.

Second, Zhu Hui, his family, and his defense lawyers maintained that he did not constitute a crime of participating in a gang-like organization and requested that the court initiate an absentia trial procedure to investigate the facts.

Third, they suggested that the court change the coercive measures for Zhu Hui's brother, Zhu Mao, to bail. Zhu Hui and Zhu Mao lost their father at a young age and have a 70-year-old mother; Zhu Mao was detained on September 23, 2022, and his wife passed away later, leaving behind three underage children without a caregiver.

Zhu Hui's defense lawyers, Jin Lin and Peng Ye, stated that as legal professionals, they hope that the Baise City judicial authorities will "close the case and settle the matter" rather than "settle the case and close the matter"; they hope that the authorities will thoroughly investigate the systematic and large-scale torture in this case and provide a clear answer to the parties involved, so as to comfort the deceased in a fair and just manner and uphold the dignity of the law.