Mahmoud Sadqi: Families of Saeed Toosi's Complainants Have Written to 15 Representatives

Mahmoud Sadqi, a representative from Tehran in the parliament, announced that the families of several complainants against Saeed Toosi, a famous Quran reciter in Iran, have written letters to 15 reformist and principlist representatives, excluding him, requesting follow-up on the case. Two weeks ago, the fathers of two complainants also met with members of the Parliament's Article 90 Commission and the parliamentary deputy of the judiciary. In an interview with the February 1st issue of Shargh newspaper, this Tehran representative stated that the families of the complainants, excluding Toosi, have written to 15 principlist and reformist representatives and requested that this case be pursued. He added, "When none of the 15 representatives take this issue seriously and have no time for such matters, it means my duty is heavier than before." This representative did not mention the dates of these letters. According to Mr. Sadqi, the fathers of two complainants were present in the Article 90 Commission two weeks ago and requested a thorough investigation into this case. According to the report, these two individuals, in addition to several members of parliament, have also spoken with the parliamentary deputy of the judiciary and the parliamentary deputy of the Islamic Propagation Organization. He added, "Two weeks ago, families contacted us that the criminal court of appeal had issued a ruling. They were astonished and surprised. We followed up and found that the case was not in the branch, but interestingly, a ruling had been issued." In November, Mr. Sadqi published a letter from the head of the Article 90 Commission to the head of the judiciary, stating that the head of the Tehran judiciary had taken this case from Branch 56 of the appeals court and had not returned it until now. This parliament representative announced that many of the families of Saeed Toosi's complainants did not pursue their complaints openly due to shame and modesty and that only two families were following up on the issue. On Friday, February 6, Mr. Sadqi also reported that Saeed Toosi had been acquitted in the appeals court of the charge of "spreading corruption and vice." He had previously been sentenced to four years in prison. Previously, this Quran reciter's case regarding allegations of child sexual abuse and "committing acts contrary to chastity" had been closed. Mahmoud Sadqi tweeted, "It appears that the Quranic child abuser is backed by individuals who have infiltrated the house of the Supreme Leader." In contrast, Saeed Toosi denied the influence claims in an interview with Ensaf News website. Previously, two of Saeed Toosi's complainants had stated in an interview with Radio Farda that an order for his non-prosecution had been issued due to the intervention of "Ali Moghadam, the communications officer of the Supreme Leader's office," the "head of the judiciary," and the "prosecutor of Tehran." Additionally, according to an image of the letter from the head of the Article 90 Commission to the head of the judiciary regarding this case, the investigator had issued a "charge order" for Mohammad Gandom Nejad Toosi, known as Saeed Toosi, in 2012, but on May 9, 2013, with the "opinion" of Ali Khalafi, advisor to the head of the judiciary, and the "opinion" of Abbas Jafari Dolat Abadi, the prosecutor of Tehran, an order for his non-prosecution was issued. Some news sites reported that the number of complainants in this case was more than 10, but some did not file complaints and said they would "appear in court as witnesses." Saeed Toosi is a well-known Quran reciter in Iran whose recitations are significant in the eyes of the Supreme Leader and in government ceremonies such as the opening of the Islamic Consultative Assembly, indicating his importance. Following this, Ali Motahari, the deputy speaker of the parliament, criticized the prolonged time taken to address Saeed Toosi's case, deeming it unnatural. Hossein Allah Karam, the secretary of the Coordination Council of Hezbollah Iran, also called for the "harshest punishment" for this famous Quran reciter and the prosecution of his supporters, noting that following reports from this case, the attendance of teenagers in Quran classes has decreased. In contrast, Naser Makarem Shirazi, a Shia cleric in Qom, implicitly criticized what he called "rumor-mongering and spreading" and also criticized reports from foreign media about this case. Earlier, Radio Farda had reported on the background of the investigator of Saeed Toosi's case, Reza Kian Manesh Rad. While Reza Kian Manesh Rad had closed Saeed Toosi's case, he had previously requested heavy sentences for internet defendants, including Saeed Malekpour, who was arrested by the Revolutionary Guards in projects titled "Gordab" and "Mosalhin." Besides Saeed Malekpour, some other internet defendants, including Hassan Sisarhti, who was investigated by Kian Manesh Rad, were sentenced to death, which was ultimately revoked. Other internet activists, such as Hossein Ronaghi Maleki and Abolfazl Abedini, who were also investigated by him, received long prison sentences of over 10 years.