String of Political Murders Were to Create Rift Among Political Factions
August 5, 1999 - 0:0
TEHRAN -- The Judicial Organization of the Armed Forces in a new statement on Wednesday announced further details on the last year's spate of murders in the country and pointed out the reasons for the lengthy investigations over the case. Releasing for the first time a picture of Saeed Emami (Eslami), ''the main mastermind behind the serial killings'', the organization announced that all principals and internal agents involved in the murders have been identified.
It said subsequent to the previous reports on the serial killings in the country last fall and based on the findings of Tehran's military tribunal, more details on the case will be reported to the people. In line with the orders of the Supreme Leader and emphasis of the president for a sound probe into the ''important and national case'' and identification of root causes of this ''dangerous sedition'', a group of highly specialized security officers undertook the responsibility of investigation over the case under the supervision of Tehran's military court, said the statement.
It stressed that in the course of extensive investigations and legal procedures which have been decisively followed to date, the principals and internal agents involved in the murders have been identified. ''Given that such crimes are beyond the occurrence of a number of murders and are principally designed and carried out in harmony with a vicious plot against the system, therefore, all-out investigations into the roots and various dimensions of this plot are continuing with special sensitivity,'' read the statement.
It stressed that agents involved in the murders attempted to create crisis and insecurity in the society and had planned to push political trends and revolutionary forces towards a full-scale violent confrontation. To this end, five months prior to the first murder and on the basis of a plan designed by Saeed Emami, the agents embarked on identification of their subjects, said the statement, adding that documents are available to the effect that in addition to those murdered, other persons were targets of future operations which would have been also followed by assassination of figures from the leading political currents (the two active factions) in the country.
The agents first planned to commit the murders collectively, through explosion or by a machine-gun fire at a gathering, but later changed their mind and murdered their subjects individually in a cruel and atrocious manner in an attempt to provoke people's sentiments and distort image of the system, inside and outside the country, and suggest the idea of insecurity even for women at home, the statement further added.
In parts of his confessions, Saeed Emami admitted involvement in the murders and confessions of others in this connection and said: ''My interpretation was that given the prevailing disputes in the political and cultural atmosphere of the country, a number of commotional cruel murders, such as stabbing in the case of Forouhar's family, or abduction of some authors and later discovery of their bodies, can be manipulated both inside and outside the country." Moreover, it added, another key agent accused of involvement in the case in parts of his confessions said the reason behind the murders was to provoke human rights agencies to demand permission for visiting Iran which would have been rejected by and consequently Iran would have been isolated in the international scene.
Elsewhere in his confessions he said he approved Emami's interpretations, adding: ''The reasoning of other persons involved in the case was not out of the context of Saeed Eslami's outlooks,'' which was involvement in the operations which followed no benevolent objectives but the wrong and deviating reasoning to sow discord in the country. The statement further continued that based on the confessions, including those of Saeed Emami, the agents first planned to wage a mental war to attribute the murders to the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) and, if failed, to the information minister in an attempt to suggest that the killings had been carried out by the government and the system.
To this end, on the first day of his detention and in reply to the first question raised by the then military prosecutor on his views about agents behind the murders, Emami said: ''I think the murders have been committed by IRGC personnel.'' However, when failed in their attempt to attribute the murders to IRGC, two key agents involved in the case, Mostafa Kazemi and Mehrdad Alikhani, by taking a protest gesture, attempted to attribute the case to the information minister, said the statement, adding that the two in a meeting with the then Information Minister Dori Najafabadi threatened him that if no step was taken to bring them out of the prevailing atmosphere, they would name him as the person who had instructed the murders.
Dori Najafabadi immediately reported the case to the senior officials of the country and followed up the issue until the accused were arrested, the vicious plot disclosed and main agents involved in the murders were identified and detained, the statement further added. In their explicit confessions the agents admitted that in an attempt to prepare the ground for labelling the information minister, at various intervals following the murders they met with the minister and talked about various subjects but with no mention of the murders.
They said they intended to allege later that the murders had been committed upon orders of the minister and that the meetings were made in that connection, it added. The statement said that 23 people were prosecuted as those accused in connection with the case but following investigations, a number of them who proved having played no role in the murders were released on bail.
However, the main agents, except for one who committed suicide, are under detention and investigations are underway, read the statement. The important point concerning personality of the main agents of the case and engineer of the crimes is that it took a long time to identify the real nature of those who pretended to have different political inclinations, it said. The statement said irrespective of the way they entered and were promoted at information ministry (it is questionable in terms of management), the individuals had succeeded in pretending to be faithful and committed.
It said at the first stage they were believed to have done such a work out of passion as a result of miscalculation. After six months, the inquiry showed that the Islamic system had suffered great damage and irreparable blow on the part of those who were thought to be ''friends'', whereas the real side of case was that they were enemies and trust had been laid in those who were not trustworthy, the statement read.
Following arrest of Saeed Emami, the mastermind of the plot, on January 25, 1999, as well as the progress in the investigation and clarification of many issues, and obtaining key information about his link with foreigners, Emami who had realized that officials have identified his real nature and felt that he had no way to escape justice, he attempted to commit suicide several times, said the statement.
Emami committed suicide on six different occasions since May 3, 1999, and each time he was saved by officials in charge of watching him, said the statement, adding that reports on all the occasions have been recorded in his case. It said that high ranking officials of the country were informed of repeated suicide attempts by Emami and they, including President Mohammad Khatami, were immediately notified of the suicide of Emami on June 16, 1999. Emami, who had been interrogated after committing suicide at prison, said in response to a question about the reason for his suicide attempts, that he wanted to eliminate himself.
The statement said that Emami was skillful in committing suicide as was evident in exceptional methods used by him to kill himself. It said that Emami had once said in an interrogation that he had learnt methods of suicide from a spy, who had already killed himself after his arrest. Investigation of the issue revealed that suicide of the spy as mentioned by Emami with a similar method was true, it added.
In view of the importance of the case and the need to protect the culprit, measures were adopted to prevent him from committing suicide, said the statement. It said Emami was under round-the-clock surveillance at the prison. On the other measures taken to foil his suicide attempt, the statement referred to monitoring behavior of Emami both inside and outside his cell by installing a camera in the cell and keeping another culprit in Emami's cell.
On the last and fatal suicide attempt, the statement said on June 16, the watch officer led Emami to bathroom but due to ethical reasons the officer neglected his mission for a few minutes and turned his eyes away, said the statement, adding that having seized the opportunity, the accused swallowed depilatory substance. It added that the officer knew the matter soon, took Emami out of the bathroom and informed the guard officer and prison officials.
Emami was immediately transferred to prison's clinic and then to a specialized hospital but despite ceaseless efforts and special care of doctors, Emami died 72 hours later on June 19 of severe injuries caused by the poisonous substance, said the statement, adding that after a series of legal formalities, officials of the hospital delivered the body of Emami to coroner's office.
The coroner's office explicitly confirmed that arsenic contained in depilatory substance swallowed by Emami was the cause of his death. The statement said the post-mortem examination and the autopsy and pathological examinations on entrails of the culprit as well as toxicological tests on arsenic ingredient of the substance and clinical observations all point to Emami's use of depilatory substance. The statement said the watch officer and the prison officials had been reprimanded for their carelessness in controlling Emami and for providing him with the substance.
It added that it is another issue under investigation at one of the branches of Tehran's Military Prosecutor's Court and necessary measures have been adopted to legally deal with the case of violators. The statement at the end said all information related to the case would be offered to the public at suitable time and that all the data presented are based on legal documents.
(IRNA)
It said subsequent to the previous reports on the serial killings in the country last fall and based on the findings of Tehran's military tribunal, more details on the case will be reported to the people. In line with the orders of the Supreme Leader and emphasis of the president for a sound probe into the ''important and national case'' and identification of root causes of this ''dangerous sedition'', a group of highly specialized security officers undertook the responsibility of investigation over the case under the supervision of Tehran's military court, said the statement.
It stressed that in the course of extensive investigations and legal procedures which have been decisively followed to date, the principals and internal agents involved in the murders have been identified. ''Given that such crimes are beyond the occurrence of a number of murders and are principally designed and carried out in harmony with a vicious plot against the system, therefore, all-out investigations into the roots and various dimensions of this plot are continuing with special sensitivity,'' read the statement.
It stressed that agents involved in the murders attempted to create crisis and insecurity in the society and had planned to push political trends and revolutionary forces towards a full-scale violent confrontation. To this end, five months prior to the first murder and on the basis of a plan designed by Saeed Emami, the agents embarked on identification of their subjects, said the statement, adding that documents are available to the effect that in addition to those murdered, other persons were targets of future operations which would have been also followed by assassination of figures from the leading political currents (the two active factions) in the country.
The agents first planned to commit the murders collectively, through explosion or by a machine-gun fire at a gathering, but later changed their mind and murdered their subjects individually in a cruel and atrocious manner in an attempt to provoke people's sentiments and distort image of the system, inside and outside the country, and suggest the idea of insecurity even for women at home, the statement further added.
In parts of his confessions, Saeed Emami admitted involvement in the murders and confessions of others in this connection and said: ''My interpretation was that given the prevailing disputes in the political and cultural atmosphere of the country, a number of commotional cruel murders, such as stabbing in the case of Forouhar's family, or abduction of some authors and later discovery of their bodies, can be manipulated both inside and outside the country." Moreover, it added, another key agent accused of involvement in the case in parts of his confessions said the reason behind the murders was to provoke human rights agencies to demand permission for visiting Iran which would have been rejected by and consequently Iran would have been isolated in the international scene.
Elsewhere in his confessions he said he approved Emami's interpretations, adding: ''The reasoning of other persons involved in the case was not out of the context of Saeed Eslami's outlooks,'' which was involvement in the operations which followed no benevolent objectives but the wrong and deviating reasoning to sow discord in the country. The statement further continued that based on the confessions, including those of Saeed Emami, the agents first planned to wage a mental war to attribute the murders to the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) and, if failed, to the information minister in an attempt to suggest that the killings had been carried out by the government and the system.
To this end, on the first day of his detention and in reply to the first question raised by the then military prosecutor on his views about agents behind the murders, Emami said: ''I think the murders have been committed by IRGC personnel.'' However, when failed in their attempt to attribute the murders to IRGC, two key agents involved in the case, Mostafa Kazemi and Mehrdad Alikhani, by taking a protest gesture, attempted to attribute the case to the information minister, said the statement, adding that the two in a meeting with the then Information Minister Dori Najafabadi threatened him that if no step was taken to bring them out of the prevailing atmosphere, they would name him as the person who had instructed the murders.
Dori Najafabadi immediately reported the case to the senior officials of the country and followed up the issue until the accused were arrested, the vicious plot disclosed and main agents involved in the murders were identified and detained, the statement further added. In their explicit confessions the agents admitted that in an attempt to prepare the ground for labelling the information minister, at various intervals following the murders they met with the minister and talked about various subjects but with no mention of the murders.
They said they intended to allege later that the murders had been committed upon orders of the minister and that the meetings were made in that connection, it added. The statement said that 23 people were prosecuted as those accused in connection with the case but following investigations, a number of them who proved having played no role in the murders were released on bail.
However, the main agents, except for one who committed suicide, are under detention and investigations are underway, read the statement. The important point concerning personality of the main agents of the case and engineer of the crimes is that it took a long time to identify the real nature of those who pretended to have different political inclinations, it said. The statement said irrespective of the way they entered and were promoted at information ministry (it is questionable in terms of management), the individuals had succeeded in pretending to be faithful and committed.
It said at the first stage they were believed to have done such a work out of passion as a result of miscalculation. After six months, the inquiry showed that the Islamic system had suffered great damage and irreparable blow on the part of those who were thought to be ''friends'', whereas the real side of case was that they were enemies and trust had been laid in those who were not trustworthy, the statement read.
Following arrest of Saeed Emami, the mastermind of the plot, on January 25, 1999, as well as the progress in the investigation and clarification of many issues, and obtaining key information about his link with foreigners, Emami who had realized that officials have identified his real nature and felt that he had no way to escape justice, he attempted to commit suicide several times, said the statement.
Emami committed suicide on six different occasions since May 3, 1999, and each time he was saved by officials in charge of watching him, said the statement, adding that reports on all the occasions have been recorded in his case. It said that high ranking officials of the country were informed of repeated suicide attempts by Emami and they, including President Mohammad Khatami, were immediately notified of the suicide of Emami on June 16, 1999. Emami, who had been interrogated after committing suicide at prison, said in response to a question about the reason for his suicide attempts, that he wanted to eliminate himself.
The statement said that Emami was skillful in committing suicide as was evident in exceptional methods used by him to kill himself. It said that Emami had once said in an interrogation that he had learnt methods of suicide from a spy, who had already killed himself after his arrest. Investigation of the issue revealed that suicide of the spy as mentioned by Emami with a similar method was true, it added.
In view of the importance of the case and the need to protect the culprit, measures were adopted to prevent him from committing suicide, said the statement. It said Emami was under round-the-clock surveillance at the prison. On the other measures taken to foil his suicide attempt, the statement referred to monitoring behavior of Emami both inside and outside his cell by installing a camera in the cell and keeping another culprit in Emami's cell.
On the last and fatal suicide attempt, the statement said on June 16, the watch officer led Emami to bathroom but due to ethical reasons the officer neglected his mission for a few minutes and turned his eyes away, said the statement, adding that having seized the opportunity, the accused swallowed depilatory substance. It added that the officer knew the matter soon, took Emami out of the bathroom and informed the guard officer and prison officials.
Emami was immediately transferred to prison's clinic and then to a specialized hospital but despite ceaseless efforts and special care of doctors, Emami died 72 hours later on June 19 of severe injuries caused by the poisonous substance, said the statement, adding that after a series of legal formalities, officials of the hospital delivered the body of Emami to coroner's office.
The coroner's office explicitly confirmed that arsenic contained in depilatory substance swallowed by Emami was the cause of his death. The statement said the post-mortem examination and the autopsy and pathological examinations on entrails of the culprit as well as toxicological tests on arsenic ingredient of the substance and clinical observations all point to Emami's use of depilatory substance. The statement said the watch officer and the prison officials had been reprimanded for their carelessness in controlling Emami and for providing him with the substance.
It added that it is another issue under investigation at one of the branches of Tehran's Military Prosecutor's Court and necessary measures have been adopted to legally deal with the case of violators. The statement at the end said all information related to the case would be offered to the public at suitable time and that all the data presented are based on legal documents.
(IRNA)