Arrest of Three Government Officials Due to 'Violations' in Currency and Goods Import

Simultaneously with the statements of the Tehran prosecutor regarding the arrest of three government officials related to the currency market and goods imports, the Ministry of Intelligence announced the arrest of 18 individuals whom they labeled as 'members of a pyramid network for currency exit from the country.' According to the IRNA news agency, Abbas Jafari Dolatabadi, the Tehran prosecutor, stated on Saturday, September 15, that in recent days, three government officials were arrested in connection with 'special branch' cases. 'Special branches' are courts established after the crisis in the Iranian currency and coin market at the request of the head of the judiciary and the order of the Supreme Leader to address the cases of 'economic corruptors.' The Tehran prosecutor announced that these three officials were arrested in relation to currency and the import of goods with state currency. He also mentioned that one of these officials was 'related to the Central Bank.' The Tehran prosecutor did not provide further details about the arrests and promised that more information would be announced after the investigations are completed. Following the currency crisis in Iran, judiciary officials have reported the arrest or summoning of several government officials. Ahmad Iraqi, the currency deputy of the Central Bank of Iran, is the highest-ranking government official arrested in recent weeks. In recent weeks, hundreds of individuals have also been arrested on charges of 'disrupting the currency and coin market,' and courts have been held for dozens of them. Concurrently, reports have emerged regarding 'violations' in the import of mobile phones, cars, and other goods that were imported with state currency, and judiciary officials have announced the arrest of some individuals in this regard. On Saturday, the Iranian Ministry of Intelligence also reported that 18 individuals were arrested by the intelligence offices of Fars and Hormozgan provinces for taking 'significant amounts of currency out of the country.' The ministry stated that these individuals had taken the currencies 'through unauthorized exchange offices or physically.' The Ministry of Intelligence did not specify details, stating that these individuals had established 'several pyramids and human chains' in the form of a financial pyramid scheme. The announcement did not mention the amount of currency that, according to the Ministry of Intelligence, these individuals had taken out of the country. The arrest of hundreds of individuals due to their activities in the currency and coin market comes at a time when many analysts have previously stated that 'security measures,' while they may prevent a rise in currency prices in the short term, will have no long-term effect, just as currency prices continued to rise despite 'security measures in the previous government.' Iran's economy has faced severe turbulence and tensions in recent months following Donald Trump's final decision to withdraw from the JCPOA. The rial has significantly lost its value against the dollar, the prices of coins and other goods have increased, and a wave of protests has emerged in several cities in Iran. Close associates of the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic attribute Iran's economic problems not to U.S. sanctions, but to the 'weak' performance of the government and, according to them, the 'exploitation by opportunistic individuals.'