Shi Boyu is worried his father, who has a degenerative brain condition, is going to die in a Chinese prison and never get to meet his grandson.
Shi Zongfa, 68, remains in pre-trial detention in China's southern city of Guangzhou after being arrested two years ago and charged with bribery.
His son, an Australian permanent resident living in Victoria, believes the charges are made up and retribution for his father accusing local authorities of corruption.
"This is an absolute abuse of power, and my father is by no means the only victim," Shi Boyu said.
He hopes the Australian government can pressure Beijing to free his father.
However, the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade normally only offers consular assistance to Australian citizens.
"I don't want him to die in there," Shi Boyu sobbed.
"He is very sick.
"Our most pressing demand at this point is to get [the authorities to approve] bail and get him out for medical treatment."
1,000 letters seeking justice
Shi Boyu told the ABC he gave his father $2.5 million in 2013 to invest in what turned out to be a fraudulent real estate project in Guangzhou.
After the developers illegally sold the properties and kept the proceeds, Shi Zongfa, a local court official, went on a letter-writing campaign, sending out "more than 1,000 petition letters" to all levels of government, including to President Xi Jinping.
In the letters, he denounced the developers and said corrupt local officials were complicit.
In 2018, he went to the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) in Beijing to present his case, which finally triggered an investigation and the arrest of the developers in early 2020.
The family celebrated getting justice, but then Shi Zongfa himself was arrested in September 2020 and charged three months later with bribery.
The authorities claimed he had paid a village committee member $385,000 in 2017.
But Shi Boyu said his father had just loaned the money to the committee and had a receipt with the borrower's fingerprint and signature to prove it.
"My father is the representative of 26 shareholders," Shi Boyu said.
"Why would he bribe others for his own investment?"
Neither the Guangdong provincial government nor the Chinese embassy in Canberra responded to the ABC's requests for comment.
Xi's anti-corruption crusade
When Chinese President Xi Jinping first became leader a decade ago his first major policy push was an anti-corruption drive run out of the new National Supervision Commission.
The far-reaching campaign cracked down on "tigers and flies" — both high-ranking officials and local civil servants.
It reportedly snared more than 3 million government officials, according to Chinese state media.
However, the anti-corruption body was ultimately only accountable to the Chinese Communist Party.
Chinese human rights lawyer Sam Huang said he had seen many cases like Shi Zongfa's over the past decade.
"It is not uncommon for Chinese people to petition as the plaintiff who later could become the defendant in a case," Mr Huang told the ABC.
"It is commonly believed in China that Xi's anti-corruption efforts have become a tool to combat opposition.
"The CCP rules without media oversight and accountability. It is an unregulated power. Its first priority is stability."
Waiting for a hearing
Shi Zongfa was detained for 14 months before his first court appearance in November 2021 when he appeared via video, due to COVID-19 protocols, unaccompanied by his lawyer or family.
Because he has spent much of the past two years in hospital, where visitors are not allowed, he has only been able to communicate with his lawyer a handful of times.
The lawyer declined to be identified or speak to the ABC for security concerns.
Shi Zongfa has now been waiting for nine months after another court appearance.
According to China's criminal procedure law, the court has a two-month time limit for hearing public prosecution cases, which means the verdict should be pronounced within two months of acceptance, and no later than the three-month time limit.
"They can explain that we are being approved by the Supreme Court and we can extend this time indefinitely for the next verdict," Mr Huang explained.
"I have handled cases that lagged for seven years. Two years is [not that long] in this context."
In two weeks, Shi Zongfa will celebrate his 69th birthday at the detention centre.
He remains oblivious to the fact he will soon become a grandfather — Shi Boyu's wife is three months pregnant.
"He is 68 years old, and my father should not be detained indefinitely without evidence," Shi Boyu said.
"This is illegal and is extremely unjust."
