Charges of 'Corruption on Earth' for First and Second Defendants in National Bank Theft

A Tehran-based newspaper reported on the proceedings of the case involving the theft from the National Bank's safe deposit boxes, stating that on November 6, 'Armin and Hafez,' the first and second defendants in this case, are facing charges of 'corruption on earth' from the 17th branch of the Supreme Court. The newspaper Etemad emphasized that in late September, these defendants defended themselves, and the judges of the Criminal Court of Tehran Province sentenced them to 'amputation of hands' for 'hadd theft.' Etemad noted that despite this ruling, the defendants are facing the maximum penalty of corruption on earth in another part of the case from the Supreme Court. Etemad also reported deficiencies in the case and quoted 'Amin Golriz,' the lawyer for Armin, the main thief of the National Bank, stating: 'A single act cannot simultaneously have two punishments; if the defendant's hand must be cut off, then it is hadd theft and cannot be corruption on earth, or vice versa; if it is corruption on earth, it cannot be hadd theft.' According to the defendant's lawyer, 'the case has two parts; the first part is the Criminal Court's ruling regarding the amputation of hands, which is considered hadd theft,' and the second part of the case is being reviewed in the Revolutionary Court, which 'did not find the elements of the crime established and acquitted the defendants.' Golriz told Etemad that the ruling of the first part of the case 'has been appealed and is currently in the process of determining a branch for review by the Supreme Court,' but the acquittal in the second part of the case by the Revolutionary Court was referred back to the parallel branch of the Revolutionary Court by the Supreme Court 'due to the extensive dimensions of the crime' and with the intensification of the charge to corruption on earth. According to this lawyer, interpretations of the law vary, but it seems there is no legal ambiguity in the charge of corruption on earth, as the legislator has explicitly addressed its instances. Etemad previously reported in July of this year that the first defendant in the National Bank theft case 'attempted suicide in prison.' Given the first defendant's presence in court for the case proceedings in recent months, it seems this suicide attempt was unsuccessful, and now we must await the issuance of the 'corruption on earth' ruling. According to Article 286 of the Islamic Penal Code, anyone who commits the crime of corruption on earth is guilty and is sentenced to death. Accordingly, the law emphasizes that the punishment for corruption on earth is a fixed punishment, and there is no possibility of reducing the penalty. The theft from the National Bank was one of the most notorious robberies in Iran, with Mounsaan, a member of the National Bank's board, stating about the theft: 'The thieves broke into 162 out of 250 safe deposit boxes belonging to customers with a crowbar and emptied any box that was full.' He added that the boxes were equipped with security systems and stated: 'The team of thieves who entered the branch were very skilled and experienced and managed to disable the systems.' Domestic media also reported on the dimensions of this theft: the robbery occurred in the early hours of June 3, 2022, and the thieves entered the building through the back door by breaking and cutting the lock, and after cutting the large safe door and hacking its code, they entered the bank's safe deposit area, emptied 169 out of 250 boxes, and then exited through the same back door, closed the door, secured the lock, and left the scene. This case ultimately led to the arrest of 26 individuals.