David Lin

David Lin is an American pastor who was detained and imprisoned by the Chinese government from 2006 to 2024.

Biography Lin was born in China, later immigrating to the United States and gaining citizenship. He worked as an economic advisor to state officials in Iowa and California, later living in Orange County, California with his wife. He converted to Christianity following his wife's conversion.

According to China Aid, Lin traveled to China frequently in the 1990s to support churches there, and he registered as a Christian minister with the Chinese government in 1999. The organization also has said Lin attempted to receive a missionary license from the Chinese government. He was detained that same year, after working with a "house church" which was unauthorized by the Chinese government. He was formally arrested on charges of contract fraud in 2009. prior to his release in 2024, Lin had been scheduled to be released in 2029. At the time of his release, Lin had been one of three Americans detained in China whom the State Department considered wrongfully detained.