Typical process: arrest first, threaten you/family, send you back into public with your head down, and if you really make someone mad in the CCP they have a mock trial and imprison you.
We are talking about Li Wenliang. He wasn’t arrested, threatened, or imprisoned. He had “a talk”, similar to how NSA had “a talk” with a US YouTuber who apparently was not patriotic enough.
The case you are describing is about spreading false news; think Bannon or Alex Jones.