Iran | Executions in Zahedan, Sari, Sanandaj, Kerman, Kahnuj

Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); August 22, 2023: A Baluch man only identified as Mr Mir was executed for drug-related charges in Zahedan Central Prison. Four other Baluch men were executed at the prison that day and he is the seventh reported Baluch execution in Iran that day.

According to Hal Vash, a Baluch man was executed in Zahedan Central Prison on 21 August. He has only been identified as Mr Mir who was sentenced to death for drug-related charges by the Revolutionary Court.

Four other Baluch men were reported to have been executed at the prison for the same charges that day. Their identities were reported as 29-year-old Abdolsamad Khadem from Zahak, Yaghoub Ejbari (photo), a father of eight from the village of Gharghouk in Zahedan, Mohammad Anwar Barahouyi from Zahedan and Esmail Ghanbarzehi.

At the time of writing, none of their executions have been reported by domestic media or officials in Iran.

Ethnic minorities, the Baluch in particular, are grossly overrepresented in execution numbers in Iran. In 2022, at least 174 Baluch minorities including 3 women, were executed in 22 prisons across Iran, making up 30% of overall executions. This is while they represent just 2-6% of Iran’s population. Furthermore, in the first six months of 2023, 20% of the at least 354 executions were Baluch people.

Drug-related executions have continuously risen every year for the past three years. At least 206 people were executed for drug-related charges in the first six months of 2023, a 126% rise compared to the same period in 2022 when 91 were executed. 40 people were executed in the same period in 2021.

The number of drug executions dramatically dropped in 2018 following a 2017 Amendment to the Anti-Narcotics Laws. Consequently, drug executions ranged between 24-30 per annum between 2018-2020. The Amendment was reversed in practice in 2021 when executions increased ten-fold to 126 in 2021 and doubled again in 2022 with 256 drug-related executions.

Man Executed in Sari

Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); August 22, 2023: Mousa Afkhami, a man sentenced to death for murder, was executed in Sari Central Prison.

According to information obtained by Iran Human Rights, a man was executed in Sari Central Prison on 20 August. His identity has been established as 48-year-old Mousa Afkhami who was sentenced to qisas(retribution-in-kind) for murder.

Informed sources told Iran Human Rights that Mousa was arrested four years ago and sentenced to death. He was from Lahijan and had two children.

At the time of writing, his execution has not been reported by domestic media or officials in Iran.

Those charged with the umbrella term of “intentional murder” are sentenced to qisas (retribution-in-kind) regardless of intent or circumstances due to a lack of grading in law. Once a defendant has been convicted, the victim’s family, as the plaintiffs, are required to choose between death as retribution, diya (blood money) or forgiveness.

Man Executed in Sanandaj

Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); August 22, 2023: State media have reported the execution of Shouresh Morovati, a Kurdish man sentenced to qisas (retribution-in-kind) for murder in the course of an armed robbery, in Sanandaj Central Prison.

According to the Judiciary’s Mizan news agency, a man was executed in Sanandaj Central Prison on 22 August. His identity has been reported as Gholamreza (Shouresh) Morovati who was sentenced to qisas for murder in the course of an armed robbery.

The Kurdistan province Chief Justice said: “With the Saqqez police’s actions, the defendant was arrested after nine months and sent to prison. The defendant was sentenced to qisas following his trial. This sentence was upheld by the Supreme Court.”

Iran Human Rights previously warned of Shouresh Morovati’s imminent execution.

An informed source previously told Iran Human Rights: “Shouresh Morovati was from Saqqez and arrested for an armed robbery that led to a murder in 2009 and sentenced to qisas for murder. Shouresh was one of the prisoners who escaped during the Saqqez Prison unrest (due to prison authorities not taking measures against Covid-19) in the spring of 2020. He was transferred to Sanadaj Central Prison after being rearrested.”

“Shouresh was subjected to months of torture in the Sanandaj intelligence detention centre, the signs of which are still visible on his body,” the source added.

Ethnic minorities are grossly overrepresented in execution numbers in Iran.

Man Executed in Kahnuj

Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); August 21, 2023: Rasoul Narouyi, a Baluch man sentenced to death for murder, was executed in Kahnuj Prison.

According to Hal Vash, a Baluch man was executed in Kahnuj Prison on 21 August. His identity has been reported as 29-year-old Rasoul Narouyi who was sentenced to qisas (retribution-in-kind) for murder.

He was arrested around four years ago. He was transferred to solitary confinement in preparation for his execution along with another prisoner named Mehdi Bameri the day prior to execution. 28-year-old Mehdi Bameri who is also on death row for murder, was returned to his cell after being granted a two-month extension by the plaintiffs.

At the time of writing, Rasoul’s execution has not been reported by domestic media or officials in Iran.

Two Executed in Kerman

Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); August 21, 2023: Saeed Rigi, a Baluch man, and Abdolghafour Toumaj, a Turkmen minority, were executed for drug-related charges in Kerman Central Prison.

According to Hal Vash, two men were executed in Kerman Central Prison on 21 August. Their identities have been reported as 40-year-old Saeed Rigi, a Baluch man from Zahedan and Abdolghafour Toumaj, a Turkmen man from Gorgan.

Both men were arrested for drug-related charges in separate cases around three years ago and sentenced to death by the Kerman Revolutionary Court. They were transferred to solitary confinement in preparation for their executions on 19 August.

At the time of writing, neither of their executions have been reported by domestic media or officials in Iran.

Source: Iran Human Rights, Staff, August 21-22, 2023

_____________________________________________________________________

FOLLOW US ON:

CONTACT: deathpenaltynews@gmail.com

"One is absolutely sickened, not by the crimes that the wicked have committed,
but by the punishments that the good have inflicted."

— Oscar Wilde

Former Florida officer who raped, murdered 11-year-old set to be executed

An execution date has been set for a former Mascotte police officer who, in May 1987, assaulted and murdered an 11-year-old girl. Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a death warrant for James Aren Duckett on Friday. He’s scheduled to be executed on March 31. It’ll be the state’s 5th execution this year, following a record 19 executions in 2025. Duckett was convicted in the murder of 11-year-old Teresa McAbee about a year after her death. According to officials, Duckett took the 11-year-old to a lake, where he sexually battered, strangled and drowned her.

Florida executes Billy Kearse

Florida executes man who killed Fort Pierce police officer during 1991 traffic stop Moments before receiving a lethal injection, Billy Kearse asked for forgiveness from the family of Danny Parrish, whose widow said she found peace after a "long, long 35 years.” A man convicted of fatally shooting a police officer with his own service weapon during a traffic stop was executed Tuesday evening, becoming the third person put to death by Florida this year after a record 19 executions in 2025.

‘Come on with it’: Arkansas inmate asks to hasten execution

A Faulkner County judge has scheduled an August hearing to determine whether a death row inmate can bypass his attorney’s advice, drop his remaining appeals, and hasten his execution. Scotty Ray Gardner, 65, is facing the death penalty for the 2016 killing of his girlfriend, Susan Heather Stubbs, in Conway. In letters sent to Circuit Judge Chuck Clawson and the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, Gardner said he wants to end his legal battles, writing that he is tired of prison life and skeptical he will receive a fair hearing. “It’s simple,” Gardner wrote in a September letter. “Come on with it.”

Chinese courts conclude trials of 2 criminal gangs from northern Myanmar, 16 sentenced to death

Chinese courts have concluded the trials of 2 major criminal groups based in northern Myanmar involved in telecom and online fraud, the Supreme People's Court (SPC) said Thursday. At a press conference held by the SPC, it was revealed that by the end of 2025, courts across the country had concluded first-instance trials of over 27,000 cases related to telecom fraud operations in northern Myanmar, with more than 41,000 returned suspects sentenced. Notably, among the trials of the so-called "4 major families" criminal gangs -- which had drawn widespread domestic and international attention -- those of the Ming and Bai groups have completed all judicial proceedings.

Florida | Governor DeSantis signs death warrant in 2008 murder case

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Governor Ron DeSantis has signed a death warrant for Michael L. King, setting an execution date of March 17, 2026, at 6 p.m. King was convicted and sentenced to death for the 2008 kidnapping, sexual battery and murder of Denise Amber Lee, a 21-year-old North Port mother. On January 17, 2008, Michael Lee King abducted 21-year-old Denise Amber Lee from her North Port home by forcing her into his green Chevrolet Camaro. He drove her around while she was bound, including to his cousin's house to borrow tools like a shovel. King took her to his home, where he sexually battered her, then placed her in the backseat of his car. Later that evening, he drove to a remote area, shot her in the face, and buried her nude body in a shallow grave. Her remains were discovered two days later. During the crime, multiple 9-1-1 calls were made, but communication breakdowns between emergency dispatch centers delayed the response. The case drew national attention and prompted w...

North Carolina | DA won't seek death penalty against woman accused of poisoning family

HENDERSONVILLE, N.C. (DPN) — Prosecutors will not seek the death penalty against a Western North Carolina entrepreneur accused of poisoning her family during a Thanksgiving dinner and killing a man nearly two decades ago. During a mandatory Rule 24 hearing Thursday in Henderson County Superior Court, Assistant District Attorney John Douglas Mundy announced that the state will proceed with the case against Gudrun Linda Jean Casper-Leinenkugel, 52, as a non-capital matter. The decision removes the possibility of an execution, meaning the maximum penalty Casper-Leinenkugel now faces is life in prison without parole.

Oklahoma Ends Indefinite Death Row Solitary Confinement

Every year, thousands of prisoners in the U.S. are placed in solitary confinement, where they endure isolation, abuse, and mental suffering . This practice might soon become rarer for some inmates in Oklahoma, thanks to the efforts of activists in the state. Earlier this month, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Oklahoma announced that the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester had ended the practice of indefinite solitary confinement for "the vast majority" of death row prisoners.

Florida executes Melvin Trotter

The execution of Melvin Trotter for the murder of 70-year-old Virgie Langford in 1986 comes as Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor questions Florida's 'deeply troubling' lethal injection record. Florida has executed its second inmate of the year even as a Supreme Court justice questioned the state's “deeply troubling" record on lethal injections and how it "shrouds its executions in secrecy." Melvin Trotter, 65, was executed by lethal injection on Tuesday, Feb. 24, for the 1986 murder of 70-year-old Virgie Langford, a mother of 4 who was on the verge of retirement when she was stabbed to death in the corner grocery store that she owned for five decades. Trotter was pronounced dead at 6:15 p.m. ET.

Man convicted in 1986 murder set to become Florida's second execution of 2026

STARKE, Fla. (DPN) — A man convicted of stabbing and strangling a grocery store owner during a robbery nearly 40 years ago is scheduled to die by lethal injection Tuesday evening, becoming the second person executed in Florida this year. Melvin Trotter, 65, is set to receive a three-drug lethal injection beginning at 6 p.m. at Florida State Prison near Starke. Trotter was convicted of first-degree murder in the 1986 killing of Virgie Langford, 70, who owned Langford’s Grocery Store in Palmetto, in southwest Florida's Manatee County.

Florida Cop-killer Billy Kearse set to be executed today

A man who confessed to fatally shooting Fort Pierce Police Officer Danny Parrish with his own service weapon during a 1991 traffic stop is scheduled to be executed starting at 6 p.m. March 3, barring a last-minute stay. Billy L. Kearse, 53, will be the third person put to death by the state this year, just one week after the execution of Melvin Trotter, who was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to death for strangling and stabbing Virgie Langford in Palmetto in 1986. The Florida Supreme Court on Feb. 12 denied a motion for a stay of execution and a motion for an extension due to the fading health and death of the father of Kearse's attorney. Attorneys for Kearse have filed a motion with the U.S. Supreme Court to stop the execution, citing violations of the Sixth, Eighth and 14th Amendments of the United States Constitution.

Death Penalty News

Search This Blog