Acid Attack Perpetrator Arrested in Tehran's Gisha Street

Colonel Hamid Makaram, deputy head of the Tehran Criminal Investigation Police, announced on Wednesday the arrest of the perpetrator of an acid attack on a girl in Tehran's Gisha Street. According to the Mizan news agency, affiliated with the judiciary, on Wednesday evening, September 31, police officers from the 16th department of Tehran's Criminal Investigation managed to identify and arrest the individual accused of the acid attack that occurred on Tuesday in the Gisha area of Tehran. As reported, on Tuesday evening, September 30, officials from a hospital in western Tehran contacted the police regarding the acid burns of a 24-year-old girl. The victim of the acid attack, named Arzu, was interrogated by police officers at the hospital and stated: 'Hooman, my boyfriend, threw acid on me.' Acid attacks have become a serious social issue in Iran over the past few years, with the sentences issued for acid attackers also provoking reactions. The most notorious acid attack incident in recent years occurred in November 2014, when several girls in Isfahan were attacked, reportedly following a sermon by the city’s Friday prayer leader criticizing 'improper hijab,' yet the suspects in that case remain unidentified and unapprehended. Following this, investigations began to identify the boy who committed the acid attack, leading to his identification and arrest on Thursday evening, September 31, near Yaftabad in Tehran. According to Mizan's report, upon being transferred to the police department, the acid attacker admitted his guilt, stating: 'I met Arzu three years ago on Punak Street, and we had been in a relationship until we both became addicted a year ago.' The suspect, identified as a 28-year-old male, continued: 'During this time, my girlfriend claimed to be from a wealthy neighborhood, but the day before, while using drugs, I realized she had deceived me and was actually a homeless girl. I became angry and poured drain cleaner on her. Then I took her to the hospital and fled.' However, Judge Mohammad Shahriari, head of the Tehran Criminal Court, provided a different account in an interview with ILNA. Judge Shahriari identified the acid attack victim as 24-year-old Arzu and stated: 'Police officers, after initial investigations, found that this girl had been staying at the home of a man named Hooman and had been friends with him for three years, and on the night of the incident, she was at his house.' Shahriari added that based on Arzu's statements, it was revealed that she had learned about Hooman's relationship with another girl, which led to a confrontation between them. The head of the Criminal Court quoted the victim's statements, saying: 'Arzu claimed that after the confrontation escalated, Hooman poured the contents of a plastic bottle on her face, and that was when I realized acid had been thrown on me.' ILNA also provided information from Dr. Parviz Namazi, the public relations manager of Shahid Motahhari Burn Hospital, regarding Arzu's current physical condition. According to Dr. Namazi, the percentage of burns from the acid attack is '14 percent,' and as stated by the public relations manager of Shahid Motahhari Burn Hospital, 'the acid was scattered on the face, hands, and body.' Dr. Namazi predicted that Arzu would remain hospitalized for the next two weeks. According to the public relations manager of Shahid Motahhari Burn Hospital, 'the girl’s eyes have not suffered serious damage, and her vision has not been lost, but an ophthalmologist is scheduled to examine the acid attack victim today, Friday.'