Judiciary Denies Breaking of Death Sentence for Suspect in 'Women Assault in Mehrgan Park' Case

On Monday, July 25, the Islamic Republic's judiciary denied the breaking of the death sentence for a man accused of assaulting nine women in Mehrgan Park. The media center of the judiciary announced that 'the breaking of the defendant's sentence is not true' and that 'the Supreme Court returned the case to the lower court solely due to deficiencies in the investigations.' According to the judiciary's announcement, the case of the accused man, who is an Afghan national, will be sent back to the Supreme Court after the deficiencies are resolved. According to state media reports, the accused man was sentenced to death in the lower court due to the testimonies of women who claimed he 'assaulted' them in Mehrgan Park in 1399 (2020). Reports indicate that in 1399, several women filed complaints against an Afghan man for harassment around Mehrgan Park in eastern Tehran. The man is accused of assaulting women under various pretexts, such as asking for the time, and according to the testimonies of the plaintiffs, he intended to kill several of them. Previously, during the proceedings of the accused's case, reports of court sessions and the accounts of the plaintiffs sparked reactions in the media and social networks.