Abdorrahman Boroumand Center

for Human Rights in Iran

https://www.iranrights.org
Omid, a memorial in defense of human rights in Iran
One Person’s Story

Karim Maqsudian Kalvari

About

Nationality: Iran
Religion: Presumed Muslim
Civil Status: Unknown

Case

Date of Killing: May 20, 2003
Location of Killing: Tehran, Tehran Province, Iran
Mode of Killing: Hanging
Charges: Possession of arms; Addiction; Drug possession; Drug trafficking

About this Case

News of the execution of Mr. Karim Maqsudian Kalvari, along with another person, was published in the Jomhuri Eslami newspaper on May 22, 2003, quoting the Public Relations Office of the Islamic Revolutionary Courts in Tehran.

Arrest and detention

Mr. Maqsudian Kalvari was arrested by security forces. The circumstances of his arrest and detention are not known.

Trial

A branch of the Islamic Revolutionary Court in Tehran tried Mr. Maqsudian Kalvari. No information is available on his trial.

Charges

The charges brought against Mr. Maqsudian Kalvari were announced as “active participation in supply and distribution of narcotics, transportation and possession of two illegal combat weapons, and addiction to narcotics.” 

The validity of the criminal charges brought against this defendant cannot be ascertained in the absence of the basic guarantees of a fair trial. International human rights organizations have drawn attention to reports indicating that the Islamic Republic authorities have brought trumped-up charges, including drug trafficking, sexual, and other criminal offences, against their opponents (including political, civil society activists, as well as unionists and ethnic and religious minorities). Thousands of alleged drug traffickers have been sentenced to death following judicial processes that fail to meet international standards. Scores of them were executed based on a 1989 law imposing mandatory death sentences on drug traffickers found in possession of specified amounts of proscribed narcotics (5 kg of hashish or opium, and more than 30 grams of heroin, codeine or methadone). The exact number of people convicted based on trumped-up charges is unknown.

Evidence of guilt

The evidence presented against Mr. Maqsudian Kalvari included “dealing a total of 128 kilograms and 625 grams of heroin, possession of 176 kilograms and 678 grams of heroin, and carrying and possession of two illegal combat weapons.”

Defense

No information is available on Mr. Maqsudian Kalvari’s defense.

Judgment

A branch of the Islamic Revolutionary Court in Tehran condemned Mr. Karim Maqsudian Kalvari to death and the Supreme Court confirmed the ruling. He was hanged, along with another defendant, in public at the Lavizan Park in Tehran on May 20, 2003 at 8 a.m. No further information is available about this execution.

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