Iran's Supreme Court Upholds 'Qisas' Death Sentence for Basij Member in Mohammad Jameh Bozorg Murder Case

The Supreme Court of the Islamic Republic of Iran confirmed the ruling of the military court of Tehran Province in the case of Mohammad Jameh Bozorg, one of the victims of the nationwide protests of 2022. According to this ruling, a Basij member was sentenced to death, and two members of the Revolutionary Guards received a total of 9 months in prison. Payam Darafshan and Mohammad Reza Kargar, lawyers for Mohammad Jameh Bozorg's family, stated in an interview with the Medara website published on Sunday, September 2, that Branch 29 of the Supreme Court upheld the decision of Branch 5 of the military court of Tehran Province in this case. Based on this ruling, a Basij member was sentenced to 'Qisas' (retribution) for 'premeditated murder,' while a Revolutionary Guards member was sentenced to six months in prison for 'armed violence,' and another Guards member received a 91-day prison sentence for 'spreading falsehoods.' According to the statements of these two lawyers, the Supreme Court of the Islamic Republic 'considered the complaints of the plaintiffs, the forensic report regarding the manner of Mr. Jameh Bozorg's death, and the reports of weapon and ammunition experts,' as well as 'investigations conducted by law enforcement and judicial authorities, and confirmed the defendants' sentences exactly. Government agents attacked Mohammad Jameh Bozorg's home in Malard County, Tehran Province, in the early hours of October 2, 2022, and shot him in the eyes with a shotgun, killing him at the age of 59. During the nationwide protests of 2022, which erupted following the death of Mahsa Amini in police custody and continued for months across Iran, government forces killed at least 500 protesters and injured or arrested thousands more. In recent months, several detained protesters have been executed by the orders of the Islamic Republic's judicial authorities.