Three Iranian teens are among the 15 persons who could be executed for the murder of a member of a pro-government paramilitary squad, the judiciary announced on Wednesday.
Since the death on September 16 of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Iranian woman of Kurdish descent, following her arrest in Tehran for allegedly violating the nation’s dress code for women, Iran has been shaken by street violence.
According to the judiciary’s Mizan Online website, a group of 15 people have been accused of “corruption on earth” in relation to the passing of Basij paramilitary force member Ruhollah Ajamian.
Authorities claim that on November 3 in Karaj, a city west of Tehran, a group of mourners who had been paying respect to a dead demonstrator, killed 27-year-old Ajamian after stripping him naked.
Initially, on November 12, Mizan Online published charges against 11 persons, including a lady, in connection with the murder of Ajamian.
However, when the trial got underway on Wednesday, it was revealed that 15 defendants had been charged with “corruption on earth,” a sharia-related offense that carries the death penalty in the Islamic republic.
According to the website, “three of the accused are aged 17,” and their cases will be heard by a juvenile court.
On Monday, an Iranian general said that thousands of individuals had been detained, including about 40 foreigners, and that more than 300 people had died in the riots, including dozens of security personnel.
According to the authorities, more than 2,000 persons have been charged with crimes.
At least six individuals have received death sentences thus far; their futures now rest with the supreme court, which decides on appeals.
Source: AFP