Iran's First Deputy of the Judiciary Reports Arrest of '29 Economic Disruptors'

The First Deputy and spokesperson of Iran's Judiciary announced that 29 individuals, referred to as 'disruptors in the country's economic system', have been arrested, with many facing charges of 'corruption on earth'. According to the state news agency IRNA, Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei announced on Sunday night, July 29, on Iranian television that arrest warrants have also been issued for other individuals, who may be detained tonight or tomorrow. The charge of 'corruption on earth' can lead to the death penalty in some cases. Earlier, Sadegh Larijani, the head of Iran's Judiciary, had threatened on June 25 that 'disruption in the country's economic system carries very heavy penalties, and if it qualifies as corruption on earth, it carries the death penalty'. The spokesperson of the Judiciary also reported on August 1 that 18 people have been arrested in cases of 'illegal car imports' and 'currency disruptors'. The reason for the arrest of some individuals has been stated as the mass buying and selling of coins. Law enforcement and judiciary officials have mentioned the arrest of an individual named 'Hamid Mazloomian', who, according to them, along with his son, 'has bought and sold more than two tons of coins'. Meanwhile, Abbas Jafari Dolatabadi, the Tehran prosecutor, said on Sunday that the money used to purchase coins by the top 30 buyers came from 'deposits withdrawn from six banks, both state and private'. Mr. Jafari Dolatabadi did not provide further details about the coin purchases by these individuals. He also referred to the government's commitment to deliver '62 tons of gold' to individuals due to a coin pre-sale scheme, stating that according to the head of the Gold and Jewelry Union, 'more than 200 tons of gold' have also been hoarded by the public in their homes. According to him, 'these figures are a warning sign for the country's economy, as this pre-sale of coins was intended to attract liquidity and reduce dollar demand, but it has had the opposite effect'. Following a sudden increase in currency prices in April this year, law enforcement and the judiciary reported the arrest of what they referred to as 'currency and coin brokers'. These individuals have been arrested while, according to the regulations of the Central Bank of Iran, there are no restrictions on buying coins, and Iranian law does not mention any crime related to holding coins. There are also no stated restrictions on the buying and selling of dollars in Iranian law. However, judiciary officials typically issue arrest orders for these individuals on charges of 'disruption in the economic system'. In recent weeks, reports have also emerged regarding 'violations' in the import of mobile phones, cars, and other goods that were imported using state currency. Mr. Ejei reported on July 24 that cases have been opened against 40 companies and the CEO of the Social Security Investment Company has been summoned in connection with 'violations' in mobile phone imports using state currency. Meanwhile, many analysts have stated that 'security measures', while they may prevent a rise in currency prices in the short term, will have no long-term effect, just as currency prices continued to rise despite 'security measures in the previous administration'. According to reports from Tehran, on Sunday, July 29, the price of each US dollar in the unofficial market rose to nearly 11,000 tomans, and the price of gold coins also exceeded four million tomans.