“We Are Waiting for the Permission to Review the Case”: Mohammad Ali Taheri’s Lawyer

HRANA News Agency – Mahmood Alizadeh, Mohammad Ali Taheri’s attorney said that he had heard that in a new lawsuit, insulting the profit was added to his charges but he did not have access to the case to review it. He said: “We are waiting to have access to the lawsuit by the revolutionary court to review it.”
According to the report of Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), Mahmood Alizadeh Tabatabaei talked about the last status of his client, Mohamad Ali Taheri.
Mr. Tabatabaei said about keeping his client for more than 6 months in prison despite the end of his sentence: “During my follow-ups I was told that the case would be sent back to the revolutionary court, but the court said it was not received yet. This is while we still do not know what the allegation is. The Supreme Court denied applying article 286 over the charge but left two parts open, one of which is cooperation with Fadaiyan guerilla fighters and the other is interfering with medical matters”.
He continued, “From what I have heard the allegation of “insulting the profit” has been added to the case. According to the law, it should be a direct insult to profits or Imams. There is nothing about this in Mr. Taheri’s case. Last time the judge changed these allegations to belligerence charge and Mr. Taheri has served 5 years for that. Anyway we do not know if insulting profit is in the lawsuit or not. But it is obvious that there is no evidence for such an allegation”.
Mr. Alizadeh said, “Article 262 of penal code states that if a person insults the great profit or any profits should be sentenced to death. Article 263 is stating if a person claims that his/her insult was by mistake, negligence, hate, or effected by drugs or during drunkenness, or it was a quote from others, it is not considered as insulting the profit. It has never been the case. During the court hearing this allegation was dropped and it was not in the case. It is not possible to make a lawsuit based on old charges. Article 286 is passed in 2013”.
Mr. Taheri’s attorney explained article 286: “If a person commits a mass crime like mass murder, acts against the national security, spreading lies, disrupting economical system of country, distributing poisonous, biological, and hazardous materials, establishing centers for depravity in large number, he/she will be considered as corrupt and shall be executed. This can not be applied as the Supreme Court has declined the charge”.
He continued: “The only thing that might be added is insulting the profit which is also improbable, because it had been dropped previously. He is being kept in prison since 2010 and has not said anything according to which article 262 could be applied. We are waiting to reach the lawsuit that we could have access and review the case”.
Mohammad Ali Taheri, the founder of Halgheh theosophy, was arrested on May 4, 2011 and charged with sacrilege, indecent sexual behavior for touching the hand of a women during complimentary medical treatment, behavior against the Sharia law, intervening in medical treatment procedures, illegal income by distributing his records, and was sentenced to 5 years in prison, 74 lashes and 9000 million IRR fine.
Mr. Taheri was again tried for sacrilege, for which he had been previously tried and sentenced in summer 2014. He was sentenced to death for this charge in June 2015. His lawyers appealed.
Saeid Khalili, one of Mohammad Ali Taheri’s lawyer announced on December 19 that the Supreme Court had dropped the death sentence and a retrial would be processed in branch number 26 of the revolutionary court.
He is still being kept in prison after more than 6 months from the end of his sentence and paying fine, and a new case has been opened for him. His lawyer, Mr. Tabatabaei has to defend him in a close future in the revolutionary court of Tehran.

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