Official Cause of Death for Shahin Naseri, Witness to Navid Afkari’s Torture, Lacks All Credibility

In a press conference on Shahin Naseri’s death held on October 13, Judiciary spokesperson, Zabiollah Khodayian said: “I said that the cause of death had not been established at my last meeting. But the forensic pathologist has now declared his cause of death as drug poisoning.”

At the time of writing, there has been no official communication about the cause of death with Shahin Naseri’s family.

Shahin who was a business expert, provided a detailed description of Navid Afkari’s torture in the “investigation from the witness” document. In his 4-page testimony, he describes hearing Navid Afkari shouting and witnessing two plain-clothed officers beating him. Shahin became an outspoken witness following Navid Afkari’s execution on 12 September 2020 and testified in his own voice about what he had witnessed in interviews and recordings.

Shahin was transferred to solitary confinement on the anniversary of Navid’s execution this year and died under suspicious circumstances after being transferred to the prison infirmary on September 21.

Informed sources had previously told Iran Human Rights: “Shahin had written a letter to mark the anniversary of Navid Afkari’s execution and intended to read it over the phone. But the guards found out and transferred him to solitary confinement before he could read it.”

In a visit by an official delegation that included the Tehran Prosecutor, Mr Alqasi Mehr, the Head of the Criminal Court, Mr Shahriari and other officials that included the Head of the Prison, Shahin’s cellmates had stressed that he was “healthy and happy and didn’t have problems with anyone. He wasn’t suicidal and had plans for the future, he didn’t suffer from any particular illnesses and didn’t have any enemies in the prison.”