Exclusive; Nouri-Zad Sentenced to 61 Months in Prison and His Revelations about the 'Theft' by Mojtaba Khamenei, Qalibaf, and His Son

Mohammad Nouri-Zad, a political prisoner held in Evin prison, has been sentenced to an additional "61 months" in prison in a new case. In a phone call from prison, he questioned the legitimacy of the court, emphasizing that he would not appeal this ruling, but would not remain silent when he sees a "very large theft." A source close to Nouri-Zad's family told Voice of America on Sunday, February 4, that this political prisoner announced during a phone call that he had been sentenced to 61 more months in prison, and as soon as he began to speak about the thefts committed by Islamic Republic officials, "the phone was immediately cut off by prison agents." In an audio file received by Voice of America, Nouri-Zad stated that the "head of Ward 6" informed him that "due to the phone calls you made in Ward 6, 61 months have been added to your sentence," to which Nouri-Zad replied, "Our presence here proves our legitimacy." He explained, "When I see a very large theft, I do not remain silent; for example, nearly 90 billion tomans of prisoners' money that was in their accounts was withdrawn throughout Iran, and everyone remained silent. I took a meat grinder and smashed [the phones]." Nouri-Zad stated that this issue led to a complaint from prison officials and the 61-month prison sentence for him, adding, "[The head of Ward 6] asked if I wanted the notification. I said give it to me to tear it up. He said you have 20 days to appeal. I asked why should I appeal? I did not go to the court, I did not accept the court at all, so why should I go and write an appeal about why you sentenced me to 61 months?" Nouri-Zad, who is one of the signatories of the "14 Statement" calling for the resignation of Ali Khamenei and the transition of the Islamic Republic, emphasized: "My point is that Mojtaba Khamenei is a thief. He must be held accountable. Qalibaf is a thief, a murderer, a predator. They must be held accountable. Qalibaf's son is a thief." While Nouri-Zad was speaking about Qalibaf's son's case, the prison phone was suddenly cut off.