Rape case of girls in Iranshahr; flogging and imprisonment sentences confirmed for the defendants in the case

The Public Relations Office of the Public and Revolutionary Prosecutor's Office of Iranshahr announced the confirmation of part of the sentences issued for each of the defendants in the case of the rape of girls in Iranshahr, and said: "Regarding the charge of participating in the production of the film of the plaintiffs and using the said film as a means of threat, Each of the defendants was sentenced to 74 lashes, 5 years of penal servitude, and 5 years of deprivation of social rights, and the verdict was confirmed by the provincial appeals court.” He also reported that the Supreme Court overturned some of the sentences issued, including the death penalty and imprisonment for the four defendants in this case in the criminal court, and referred it to the same branch.

According to HRANA news agency, citing IRNA, the Public Relations Office of the Public and Revolutionary Prosecutor's Office of Iranshahr announced that the provincial appeals court has confirmed the flogging sentence, along with other punishments, for the defendants in the case of rape of girls in Iranshahr.

The Public Relations Office of the Public and Revolutionary Prosecutor's Office of Iranshahr stated in this regard: "In terms of the charge of participating in the production of the film of the plaintiffs and using the said film as a means of threat, each of the defendants has been sentenced to 74 lashes, 5 years of imprisonment, and 5 years of deprivation of social rights, and the verdict issued by the provincial appeals court has been confirmed."

He added: “The defendants in this case were sentenced to death for participating in rape and participating in kidnapping to 15 years in prison, and to 3 years in prison and 74 lashes for theft, return of property and payment of blood money, and to 5 years in prison for carrying and possessing an unauthorized weapon, according to the initial verdict issued by the Iranshahr Criminal Court One, which the Supreme Court overturned due to a lack of investigation and is currently being heard in the same branch.”

According to him, none of the defendants in this case have been granted a single day of leave and are still serving their sentences.

It is worth noting that on Friday, June 16, 2018, one of the Sunni scholars of Iranshahr announced in his Eid al-Fitr prayer sermons that 41 girls had been raped in the city, following which contradictory news about this was published in cyberspace.

The Public and Revolutionary Prosecutor of Zahedan, the capital of Sistan and Baluchestan province, denied the news of the rape of 41 girls and women in Iranshahr city, saying: "Only 3 private complainants have approached the prosecutor's office regarding this matter."

Ali Movahidi Rad had said: "The first defendant in this case was arrested and handed over to the judicial authorities immediately after a plaintiff filed a complaint (two days before Eid al-Fitr 2018)."

The second and third defendants in this case were arrested and detained on June 11 and July 5, 2018, respectively, and the police commander of Sistan and Baluchestan province announced on August 20, 2018, the arrest of the fourth defendant in this case in Bojnourd.

After news of numerous rapes of women and girls in the Iranshahr region of Sistan and Baluchestan, a group of civil activists attended a protest rally calling for improving social security, punishing the perpetrators, and supporting the victims. Instead of addressing the issue and the demands raised, security agencies arrested civil activists in the region and broadcast their confessions on television.

Among other things, they made serious accusations against Abdullah Bozorgzadeh. More than a hundred well-known civil activists and human rights defenders issued a statement condemning this behavior of the security apparatus and “demanding the immediate release of Abdullah Bozorgzadeh, the identification and punishment of rapists against women and girls, and support for rape victims in this region.”

Iranshahr County is one of the counties in Sistan and Baluchestan Province.

Source: HRANA