Paridokht Shojaei Baghini, a Baha’i citizen from Kerman, has been summoned to the Kerman Prison Enforcement Branch to serve her two-year and one-month prison sentence. Meanwhile, four other Baha’i citizens—Foad Shaker Arkani, Shahram Fallah, Yekta Fallah, and Behnam Pour-Ahmari—who were tried alongside her, have been acquitted by the Court of Appeals.

According to information received by HRANA, Ms. Shojaei was contacted via phone and instructed to report to the prison authorities to begin serving her sentence. A Baha’i resident of Kerman, familiar with the case, confirmed the news, stating: “Yekta Fallah, Foad Shaker Arkani, Behnam Pour-Ahmari, and Shahram Fallah were acquitted during the appeals process. Only Ms. Shojaei was sentenced to imprisonment and social restrictions, and she has been repeatedly summoned in recent days to begin serving her time.”

The five Baha’i citizens were initially arrested in July 2023 at the residence of Shahram Fallah. During the arrest, security officers searched Mr. Fallah’s home and the vehicles of his guests, confiscating personal items, including their mobile phones. Foad Shaker Arkani and Behnam Pour-Ahmari were released later that month, while Shahram Fallah, Yekta Fallah, and Paridokht Shojaei were released on bail in early August.

The first court hearing in their case took place on February 3, 2024, followed by a second hearing in early April 2024, where the defendants were sentenced to fines and social restrictions. However, in an unclear legal process, the court’s ruling against Ms. Shojaei was overturned, and she was subsequently informed in absentia of her revised sentence: two years and one month in prison, along with a five-year ban on social rights. This sentence was later upheld by the Court of Appeals after she filed an appeal.