An insider familiar with the “Zhejiang Yuhuan Anti-Anime Community Case,” recently interviewed by Vision Times under the pseudonym “Dong Yinglin,” vowed to continue exposing the truth behind the case. The case involves a large-scale, cross-provincial crackdown by the Yuhuan Municipal Public Security Bureau against an online subculture community connected by Japanese anime culture. The community consists of approximately 800,000 members, mostly Gen Z and Millennials born in the 1990s and 2000s. The incident has drawn significant attention from overseas Chinese organizations and human rights groups. Families of the victims have launched support activities in the United States and Canada, and continue to disclose details via social media and independent press.
Origins and development of the case
According to Dong Yinglin, the case traces back to a late-2023 online incident where the Telegram channel “Mephilas TV” leaked personal information belonging to CCP Premier Li Qiang. National security departments intervened to arrest the channel operator, but because the uploader was a minor (only 15 years old), he could not be formally convicted, and the case stalled.
However, in the spring and summer of 2025, Yuhuan police suddenly reopened the matter, forcibly linking it to the “Anti-Anime” (Anti-2D) community and other subculture groups. They claimed the community was a “brainwashing ring” controlled by overseas forces and established “Task Force 202500617” to conduct mass arrests of active members.
Dong pointed out that the operation was personally commanded by Ding Lang, then Director of the Yuhuan Public Security Bureau, and Lin Congye, Captain of the Criminal Investigation Detachment, with participation from officers like Wu Jinliang, an instructor of the Cyber Police Brigade. Using cross-provincial tactics, police took several youths from Guangdong, Jiangxi, and Sichuan back to Yuhuan, including minors. Families’ applications for bail pending trial were all rejected on the grounds of the matter being in a “critical investigation phase.”
Some officers reportedly stated they would detain suspects until they confessed—holding them for three months if they didn’t confess, then six, then nine, and so on. Families described this as systematic psychological torture.
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The only suspect genuinely involved in serious crime, Yang Zibo, a native of Shantou, Guangdong, involved in the illegal trade of personal data involving hundreds of millions of records, was secretly released in September 2025 and placed under strict protection. Yang was active in the Anti-Anime Bar and Telegram, profiting from data sales and frequently extorting community members. Although initially arrested for extortion, “picking quarrels and provoking trouble,” and infringing on personal information, he was released after only a month. Meanwhile, other youths against whom no evidence exists remain in long-term detention.
Dong believes this reflects blatant “collusion between officials and criminals.” He alleges that Yang Zibo’s business partners used large bribes and threats of whistleblowing to force Lin Congye and others to compromise. Consequently, police allegedly falsified files to shift Yang’s guilt onto innocent youths, resulting in a contradictory and illogical case file.
The reassignment of Lin Congye
Dong specifically analyzed the transfer of Lin Congye (Badge No. 074861), who was moved from his post as Criminal Investigation Captain to Captain of the Yuhuan Traffic Police Detachment around November 2025. Dong suggests two possibilities for this low-profile move:
1. Sacrificing the pawn to save the knight: Removing Lin from a core investigative role to make him a scapegoat if necessary, thereby protecting higher-level decision-makers and the task force’s interest chain.
2. Political horse-trading and protection: Lin has deep roots in Yuhuan and faces numerous allegations of corruption and torture. A direct dismissal would implicate too many parties, so he was moved to the Traffic Police—a “lucrative” department involving vehicle inspections and accident settlements. For a corrupt official, this offers even more opportunities for illicit gain than criminal investigation.
Dong noted that while Lin was expected to be promoted to Deputy Director, this case has clearly blocked his career path. The transfer serves as a compromise to ease public pressure without a total severance.
Comparison with the Niu Tengyu case
Dong compared this incident to the high-profile Niu Tengyu case, stating both follow a pattern of “political sacrifice for merit.” While innocent youths were used as stepping stones for rewards in Niu’s case, the Yuhuan case demonstrates an extreme form of official-criminal collusion.
The “true criminal” Yang Zibo was protected and released, while innocents face long-term detention and torture (including beatings, sleep deprivation, forced standing, and using leaked privacy to pressure families). Community administrator Huang Ding reportedly reported others to cyber police officer Ye Junfeng due to internal feuds, which Yang Zibo exploited by introducing “politically sensitive” elements. Once the police opened the case, they refused to admit error despite a lack of evidence, instead expanding arrests to “solidify” the charges.
Overseas support and international impact
Since last December, the DPC has held rallies in New York and Toronto, playing recordings of torture and victim testimony. They have called on democratic governments and international human rights organizations to intervene. Victims’ families have turned to X (Twitter) and YouTube, stating that the domestic judicial process is devoid of justice.
Dong Yinglin issued a clear call: the community will continue to expose evidence of Yuhuan police’s illegal acts, including torture, procedural violations, and bribery. He warned the officers involved to stop before they go further down a criminal path, stating he is prepared to release more internal materials, including recordings and chat logs, to protect the rights of these innocent youths.