Nasrin Roshan's Husband: The Judiciary Deceived Us About the Reduction of My Wife's Prison Sentence

The husband of Nasrin Roshan, a dual-national prisoner in Iran, claims that officials at Evin Prison falsely told the 60-year-old citizen that her prison sentence had been reduced from three years to 13 months. Nasrin Roshan, a 60-year-old Iranian-British citizen, is related to Sara Tabrizi, a young girl who died shortly after being released from prison and summoned again by the Ministry of Intelligence in the early days of the year 1403 in the Persian calendar. Although the judiciary denied the re-summoning of the 20-year-old girl, who was arrested along with Nasrin Roshan on charges of using fake documents and passports to leave the country, some informed sources told Radio Farda that she had been 'very scared during her detention... and was not in a good mental state.' Although the cause of Sara Tabrizi's death is still unclear, this is not the first time news of a prisoner's death after their release has been reported. Arash Asiabi, Nasrin Roshan's husband, announced on Tuesday, June 15, that his wife intended to leave the country with Sara Tabrizi on November 25, 1402, two weeks after visiting her dying aunt, when they were arrested at Tehran's Imam Khomeini Airport. According to him, the charges against Ms. Roshan included participating in a memorial ceremony for Reza Shah Pahlavi in Cairo and attending protests by Iranians abroad, for which the Iranian judiciary sentenced her to imprisonment. He stated that the reason for not publicizing his wife's arrest during this time was due to her summons to the head of Evin Prison's office and the notification of her sentence reduction from three years to 13 months. According to this account, Ms. Roshan was summoned to the head of Evin Prison's office two days after Sara Tabrizi's death. Mr. Asiabi said they were 'advised' that given the change in this sentence by the Iranian judiciary, it would be better not to publicize this news if they were to conduct an interview, which he and his wife accepted. He did not mention the name of the advising entity or individuals but added that at the same time, the reduction of his wife's prison sentence coincided with Sara Tabrizi's death. However, Mr. Asiabi stated that a week ago, his wife's lawyer was told that there was no news of a reduction in her prison sentence and that an 'administrative error' had occurred. To describe the judiciary's behavior, Nasrin Roshan's husband used the term 'deceived.' The judiciary confirmed Sara Tabrizi's arrest without mentioning the cause of her death. According to him, his wife's mental condition, considering her anxiety and depression, which she had been struggling with even before her arrest, was 'terrible' after seven to eight weeks of solitary confinement and being away from her children, and she recently suffered from 'mitral valve prolapse' and 'heart pain.' Mr. Asiabi also expressed hope that the British government would take action for the release of his wife, who has been a citizen of this country for over 20 years. He also mentioned that Sara Tabrizi was his wife's cousin and was arrested and sentenced for 'using forged documents and a passport belonging to another person' and 'insulting the leadership,' which agents discovered from voice messages two years prior to her arrest from her WhatsApp. Mr. Asiabi confirmed the pressures and 'harassment' this young girl faced in solitary confinement, stating that 'they tortured a 20-year-old girl so much and kept her in solitary confinement that she became very ill, and they transferred her to the regular ward because they saw she was deteriorating in solitary confinement.' Nevertheless, he emphasized that the judiciary has separated the cases of his wife and Sara Tabrizi.