Court Case of the Murder of Darioush Mehrjouei and Vahideh Mohammadi-Far Concludes with Conflicting Statements from Defendants

The case regarding the murder of renowned filmmaker Darioush Mehrjouei and his wife Vahideh Mohammadi-Far concluded on Thursday, January 28, in the first branch of the Criminal Court of Alborz Province. According to Iranian media, the hearing of the charges against two other defendants in the murder of Mr. Mehrjouei and Ms. Mohammadi-Far lasted for 11 hours on Thursday. The judiciary of the Islamic Republic has stated that the two defendants do not have identification documents and medical tests have shown that they have not yet reached legal age. In the final court session, one of the defendants named Eskandar said, 'Our goal was not to kill anyone; we only intended to rob Mehrjouei's house,' while another defendant named Mirowis claimed that their intention was 'murder.' Alongside these conflicting statements from the two defendants, Karim, the first defendant in the case, reiterated his statements from Wednesday, January 27, denying the murder of Darioush Mehrjouei and Vahideh Mohammadi-Far. He had stated on Wednesday that he did not commit this murder and had confessed to the accusation under police pressure. In the Thursday session, Manocheri, one of the three lawyers representing the Mehrjouei family, emphasized that based on the defendants' confessions to murder and participation in it, 'I request the court to issue a retribution sentence for all four defendants in the case for premeditated murder, payment of blood money, and punishment for violence and theft.' The final court session concluded with the Chief Justice of Alborz Province stating that 'the appropriate ruling will be issued by the court within the legal timeframe.' Eskandar, Davood, Mirowis, and Karim are the four defendants in the case, who, according to the prosecutor's office, were involved in the murder of Darioush Mehrjouei and his wife. Their motives for this murder have been described as 'hostility, financial demands, and theft.' In the indictment, Karim is identified as the murderer, while the other three defendants are considered his accomplices. Given the contradictory statements from officials regarding the investigations, details of the murder, how the defendants were arrested, and their motives, there are many questions about the proper judicial process in this case. Many social media users liken it to 'serial killings' and claim it was carried out with political motives to silence artists protesting against the government. In this regard, the Iranian Writers' Association on October 24, referring to the 'horrific murder' of Darioush Mehrjouei and his wife Vahideh Mohammadi-Far, stated that 'the government is evading accountability for the ambiguities and explaining what happened to the two.'