On Tuesday, April 2, 2024, the death sentence for political prisoner Shahriar Bayat was issued by Branch 13 of the Criminal Court in one of the provinces of Tehran. Prior to this, Shahriar Bayat, the political prisoner, had been sentenced to 18 years in prison by Branch 1 of the Revolutionary Court in Shahriar.
One of the family members of this political prisoner told Iran Human Rights Monitor (Iran HRM), “Mr. Bayat was granted furlough from Evin Prison on March 17, 2024. His death sentence, issued on February 14, 2024, by Branch 13 of the Criminal Court in one of the provinces of Tehran, for the charge of insulting the Prophet, was registered in the system on the last day of his furlough, which was March 24, 2024. It was communicated to him on the day of the end of his furlough and his return to prison.”
Shahriar Bayat, a political prisoner, was arrested on September 25, 2022, during the nationwide protests in Iran. He was detained by security forces at his home in Shahriar and transferred to Tehran’s Evin Prison. After a while, he was transferred to Ward 6 of Evin Prison.
On March 1, 2023, Shahriar Bayat was sentenced to a total of 18 years in prison. He was sentenced to one year in prison for the charge of engaging in propaganda against the system, two years for insulting Khomeini and Khamenei, five years for participating in gatherings and conspiring to commit crimes against national security, and ten years for organizing and managing unlawful (virtual) groups and being a member of them with the aim of undermining national security. Mr. Shahriar Bayat is a retired employee, married, and a resident of Shahriar County.
In a letter addressed to the judicial authorities in August 2023, Mr. Shahriar Bayat wrote:
“At the age of 63, I have reached such a place in my life for the first time. Without engaging in any practical or field activities, solely due to the fact that on my mobile phone, with the abundance and diversity of content circulating daily, billions of such materials in the world, I have been shamelessly and audaciously subjected to the creation of a case against me by intruding into the personal and private space of my phone.”
