Conflicting Reports on Death Sentence Issued for Amir Tataloo

Some media outlets in Iran reported on Sunday that Amir Hossein Maqsoudloo, known as Tataloo, a singer who was deported from Turkey to Iran, has been sentenced to death for the charge of 'insulting the Prophet.' According to these reports, which were denied by several other media outlets, the death sentence issued by the Tehran Criminal Court on Sunday, January 30, is not final and can be appealed in the Supreme Court. According to Article 262 of the Islamic Penal Code, anyone who 'insults or slanders' the Prophet of Islam is considered to have committed 'insulting the Prophet' and is sentenced to death. However, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights does not categorize such offenses as serious crimes. Shortly after, the Fars News Agency denied the issuance of the death sentence for this singer, citing an 'informed source' without referring to an official source. Meanwhile, while the Mizan News Agency, affiliated with the judiciary, had not yet reacted to these reports, the Mehr News Agency quoted the media center of the judiciary stating that 'the final ruling for Tataloo has not yet been issued.' The news of the death sentence for the charge of insulting the Prophet came at a time when the accusation of 'insulting the Prophet' against Tataloo had previously been addressed in the Ninth Branch of the Tehran Criminal Court, where judges issued a five-year prison sentence for him but did not classify his actions as 'insulting the Prophet.' According to reports from Iranian media, following an appeal from the prosecutor's office, Amir Hossein Maqsoudloo's case was sent to the Supreme Court, where the ruling was overturned and the case was sent to an equivalent branch. Earlier in January, Amir Hossein Maqsoudloo's lawyer confirmed that the Supreme Court had overturned the five-year prison sentence issued for his client on the charge of 'insulting the Prophet.' Majid Naqshi stated that the ruling for this singer was overturned months ago, and they are awaiting a new court ruling. Amir Hossein Maqsoudloo had been living in Turkey for years, but Iranian media reported on December 3, 2023, that Turkish police arrested Tataloo due to a 'complaint from the Iranian consulate' in Istanbul for 'insulting the members and staff of the consulate.' After his arrest, Turkish police handed him over to judicial authorities in Iran through the land border. In a report published by Fars News Agency after his arrest, accusations against Tataloo included 'establishing a gambling house, betting sites, encouraging, bribing, or threatening individuals to access obscene content or facilitate it, and inciting and encouraging individuals, especially the youth, to commit immoral crimes and sexual deviations and promoting corruption and prostitution.' The spokesperson for the judiciary announced earlier this year that Mr. Maqsoudloo was sentenced to five years in prison for 'insulting the sacred' and to ten years in another case for 'encouraging corruption and prostitution.'