VICTORY: Pastor John Cao – a U.S. Permanent Resident – Freed After Harrowing 7-Year Imprisonment in China

We are pleased to announce that Pastor John Cao has finally been released from prison in China. He has completed serving a seven-year sentence after being wrongfully convicted for simply living out his Christian faith.

We have represented his family throughout most of this horrific situation. As we have previously reported:

Pastor Cao is a U.S. permanent resident residing in North Carolina, but he is currently languishing behind the bars of a Chinese prison, unfairly serving a 7-year sentence for his faith.

Pastor Cao devoted his life to serving the poor communities of China and Burma (Myanmar), providing supplies, building schools, and sharing the love of Christ. Now he is imprisoned as part of China’s ongoing crackdown against Christian pastors and churches.

For over five years, we have worked tirelessly to achieve justice for Pastor Cao. We worked with the State Department and Congress, filing multiple reports, and presented oral interventions on Pastor Cao’s behalf at the United Nations.

We filed a complaint with the U.N. Working Group on Arbitrary Detention and received a favorable opinion, confirming that Pastor Cao was indeed arbitrarily detained and should be released immediately.

Although it has been a long journey, we are so pleased that Pastor Cao has now been reunited with his family in China. We will continue our work to see Pastor Cao return home to be reunited with his family in the United States. Please continue to pray for Pastor Cao and his entire family that the Lord will continue to protect and uphold them and that Pastor Cao will be able to return home soon.

This is a tremendous victory this Holy Week, but so many innocent Christians still face false imprisonment and torment for their faith. We will continue working to defend the persecuted. Stand with us.