Ejei: The Reason for Yashar Soltani's Arrest was the Disclosure of Confidential Documents

On Sunday, Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei, the spokesperson for the judiciary, spoke about the case of the "astronomical properties of Tehran Municipality" during his 104th press conference. He stated that after the General Inspection Organization got involved, the municipality was also investigating the matter, but before the completion of the report, some individuals published it, which constitutes the crime of disclosing confidential documents. According to Ejei, the issue is not about exposing corruption but rather about the publication of confidential documents. He referred to the arrest of Yashar Soltani, the editor of ArchiNews, who was detained for publishing documents related to the sale or division of properties by the Tehran Municipality and was released on bail after about two months in custody on Friday, November 21. Ejei also described the presidential debates in the U.S. as "embarrassing" and stated it is even more embarrassing for those who call the U.S. a leader and expect it to solve problems, a jab at Iranian President Hassan Rouhani. Regarding the status of the Cultural Teachers' Savings Fund, he mentioned that this fund was established in 1995 to assist teachers and, like many other funds, diverted its income towards economic activities, forming about 100 companies, one of which is Bank Sarmayeh. According to the first deputy of the judiciary, two major shareholders of Bank Sarmayeh were the Rikhtegaran Group and the Cultural Teachers' Savings Fund. Bank Sarmayeh, as the sixth private bank, has provided 12,500 billion tomans in loans to its clients, of which about two-thirds have not been repaid. The spokesperson stated that currently, financial corruption charges have been brought against some officials of this fund, some officials of Bank Sarmayeh, and some clients of this fund or brokers between this fund and the bank or between the bank and some of those who received loans. Regarding the "astronomical salaries" issue, he said that several months have passed since the issue emerged, and the people rightfully expect the system, the government, and the judiciary to take appropriate action. According to the first deputy of the judiciary, no cases have been reported to the judiciary by the government so far. Although the General Inspection Organization has submitted its report to the parliament, no criminal charges have been communicated to the judiciary by the Court of Audit. Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei spoke about the status of the "astronomical salaries" case while the parliament rejected the generalities of the proposal for "transparency of the salaries of the country's managers and the return of excess payments" by a majority of representatives. He also mentioned the case of a Tabriz doctor, stating that the accused has confessed that the food was not a religious offering, and this doctor has been charged with murder and is currently in custody. In this context, Yashar Soltani, the whistleblower of the municipality's misconduct, was released on bail. The advisor to Rouhani responded to the prosecutor regarding the case of misconduct in the Tehran municipality. The Tehran prosecutor accused the whistleblower of being aligned with a "specific political current." There was a "severe verbal conflict" in the Tehran City Council following the municipality property scandal. Larijani told Rouhani: "You call for action against the press before the Leader, but outside you shout for freedom."