More Details Regarding the Mysterious Death of Shaheen Naseri in Tehran’s Central Prison

Shaheen Naseri, one of the witnesses to the torture of Navid Afkari, died mysteriously on Tuesday, the 30th of Shahrivar, in Tehran’s Central Prison. On the morning of Wednesday, the 31st of Shahrivar, Shaheen Naseri’s family was notified to go to the Criminal Prosecutor’s Office to receive their son’s body.

Two days after news of this prisoner’s death was released, Iran’s judiciary confirmed his death and announced in a statement, without providing details, that he had gone to the prison clinic and died after 45 minutes. Mr. Naseri’s testimony regarding the beating and torture of Navid and Vahid Afkari at the detention center of the Shiraz Intelligence Bureau was included in the relevant case file; however, these statements were never considered by the court. In an audio file recorded before Navid Afkari’s execution, Shaheen Naseri, while describing some of the torture inflicted on Navid Afkari at Shiraz Intelligence, stated: “The judge of his case told me that because of your interference in this security matter, I will bring such calamity upon you that you will be dissolved!”

According to Hrana News Agency, the news organ of the Iranian Human Rights Activists Network, on Tuesday, the 30th of Shahrivar 1400, Shaheen Naseri, one of the witnesses to Navid Afkari’s torture who was imprisoned in Tehran’s Central Prison, died mysteriously.

According to Shaheen Naseri’s relatives who spoke with him before his death, there were no signs of depression or suicidal intentions in him, and he was mostly concerned about his health in solitary confinement due to threats he had received in prison.

This prisoner was exiled to Tehran’s Central Prison after testifying about Navid Afkari’s torture, and for some time had been kept in solitary confinement.

On the morning of Wednesday, the 31st of Shahrivar, Shaheen Naseri’s family was notified to go to the Criminal Prosecutor’s Office to receive their son’s body.

Two days after news of this prisoner’s death was released, the Public Relations Department of Tehran’s General Prisons Administration issued a statement confirming Shaheen Naseri’s mysterious death. Without providing details, it claimed: “This prisoner was transferred to the prison clinic in emergency conditions, and at the clinic, resuscitation procedures (cardiac massage, artificial respiration, and injection of epinephrine and IV line) were performed for 45 minutes, but despite the efforts of the medical staff, the aforementioned prisoner died.”

Mr. Naseri’s testimony regarding the beating and torture of Navid and Vahid Afkari at the detention center of the Shiraz Intelligence Bureau was included in the relevant case file; however, these statements were never considered by the court.

In an audio file recorded before Navid Afkari’s execution, Shaheen Naseri described some of these torture methods and said: “One day at Shiraz Intelligence they took me to the torture chamber. As I walked further, I heard screams, cries, pleas, and obscenities coming from a corridor. When I went forward, I saw that in one of the rooms two plainclothes individuals were beating Navid Afkari, cursing him with very vulgar and obscene language, and with complete cruelty, striking him on the head and face with pipes and batons.”

He continued in this audio message: “I clearly heard the torturers telling Navid Afkari that whatever we say is correct and you must write it down. When I went to the security prosecutor’s office to testify, the prosecutor, after hearing my account, with vulgar language said that you are interfering in a security matter. I will force these officers to file a complaint against you for false accusation and slander, and I will bring such calamity upon you that you will be dissolved.”

Earlier, a source close to Mr. Naseri’s family told Hrana’s reporter: A few days ago, coinciding with the anniversary of Navid Afkari’s execution, he was transferred from his cell in Tehran’s Central Prison to an unknown location. We thought he had been transferred to a security institution, as he had been repeatedly threatened by security agencies to remain silent about the Afkari brothers’ case, but a few days before, we found out he was in a location within Tehran’s Central Prison. Shaheen Naseri had no underlying illnesses and his death was completely sudden and suspicious.

Babak Paknia, a lawyer who represents several political prisoners, posted about Shaheen Naseri’s death on social media: Shaheen called me one day before his death using Tehran’s Central Prison telephone, and while asking me to resume his legal representation, he said he had been released from his ward and doesn’t have access to a phone, and they took his phone card and he was using his friend’s card.

Hrana first reported on the 7th of Shahrivar of last year in a detailed report about the issuance of execution, imprisonment, and lashing sentences for Navid, Vahid, and Habib Afkari, and also published related documents.

Navid Afkari, an Iranian wrestler, was executed early Saturday morning, the 22nd of Shahrivar 99, despite serious ambiguities in his case and a global wave of support for him, in Adelabad Prison in Shiraz.

Source: Hrana