Issuance of Indictments for Suspects in the Case of 'Lead Theft' from a Hospital in Kermanshah

The prosecutor of Kermanshah has announced the issuance of indictments for '8 individuals' in the case of the 'theft of lead from the radiation therapy room' of a hospital in Kermanshah, while the head of this state-run medical facility has been 'exempted from prosecution'. According to the Islamic Republic's judiciary-affiliated news agency 'Mizan', Shahram Karami, the public and revolutionary prosecutor of Kermanshah province, reported the 'arrest of the thieves and receivers' involved in this case. He also stated that 'related managers' at Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences have been summoned to the prosecutor's office, and 'judicial measures have been issued for them, leading to the conviction of some'. In this case, which was partially revealed in mid-June, at least '1,500 pieces of lead' from the radiation therapy room of 'Imam Reza Hospital in Kermanshah', valued at five billion tomans, were stolen over four months. Reports indicate that the thieves removed lead pieces, which were installed in the false ceiling for protection against X-rays, over consecutive days and used a patient wheelchair to transport them out of the premises. According to the public and revolutionary prosecutor of Kermanshah province, in this hospital theft case, sentences have been issued for 'three thieves and four receivers', and the 'security chief' has been charged due to 'neglect and lack of oversight leading to the theft'. Consequently, a 'suspension of prosecution' for one year has been issued for the manager of Imam Reza Hospital in Kermanshah and the head of the provincial university of medical sciences, while the hospital head has been 'exempted from prosecution'. Furthermore, the local newspaper 'Bakhtar' in Kermanshah quoted Saeed Elyasi, a former physicist at the Imam Reza Hospital's radiation therapy department, built by the Islamic Republic's Ministry of Roads, stating that the facility was 'incompletely' secured from 2003 to 2016. He mentioned that the ceiling around the lead wall was left 'uncovered', exactly where the lead was stolen, and 'if it had been covered at that time, the damage would not have persisted until June 2023'. Meanwhile, the radiation therapy department of this hospital is located on the first floor, and the floor above it houses the pavilion (rest area) for female medical interns (6th and 7th-year medical students) and the hospital's pathology department. This theft has sparked significant reactions among social media users, with many labeling it a 'crime' due to its extensive implications for the health of patients and medical staff. It remains unclear how many patients, hospital visitors, and students have been exposed to this dangerous radiation during the months of operation of the hospital's radiology devices without the protective lead wall.