Hessam Moradi: Excessive Bail Forces Protester to Stay in Jail

Hessam Moradi, a 33-year-old resident of the south-western city of Borazjan, has been held in detention for more than a month.

During his captivity, this father to a one-year-old girl has been subjected to physical abuse, prevented from communicating with his family and coerced to confess a crime he didn't commit.

Moradi, a member of the Turkic-speaking Qashqai minority, is accused of setting fire to the office of the local member of parliament in Borazjan during anti-establishment protests that swept Iran last year. He has denied the charges against him.

The authorities have set an 8-billion-toman ($160,000) bail for his release, an amount that his family has been unable to gather. This means he will remain behind bars unless he agrees to admit guilt.

Violently Arrested outside His Shop

In early July, Moradi was apprehended in front of his electrical appliance store in Borazjan by agents of the Intelligence Department. 

The officers beat him brutally without any explanation before taking him away to an undisclosed location, a person with knowledge of the matter told IranWire. 

The family was denied information about Moradi’s whereabouts, but the source said he was transferred to the infamous Borj Prison in Bushehr.

Civil activist Sepideh Qoliyan, who spent some time confined in the women's section of the prison, has described it as a place where detainees endure "the most savage tortures and the most inhumane conditions possible."

The source told IranWire that since his arrest, Moradi has been denied the right to make phone calls, hold face-to-face meetings or have access to legal representation.

"Only on the eighth day following his arrest his wife was able to meet with him briefly for one or two minutes in the prison after…the intervention of a family member connected to [the Ministry of Intelligence]," the source said. "They were not alone during the meeting. Hessam had suffered severe beatings, as shown by bruises on his hands and body. His clothing was tainted with blood."

The source said that Moradi’s one-year-old daughter Kaira has been crying all the time since his arrest: "Given that her mother needs to go to the shop…the child finds herself separated from both her father and mother."

"Kaira is under the care of Hessam's mother. However, owing to the distance and the extended hours she spends at the shop, she seldom has the opportunity to be with her mother."

Eight-Billion-Toman ($160,000) Bail 

Attempts by the family to secure legal representation and access to the documents of the case have proven unsuccessful. 

"The family wasn't provided with any documentation, Hessam is not authorized to retain a lawyer, and the exact nature of the charges remains unclear. It was only after repeated visits that they discovered he was accused of 'acting against national security' for setting the fire at the MP’s office."

On the evening of November 20, videos emerged on social media purportedly depicting the office of the MP engulfed in flames. 

The description accompanying one of the videos read, "The office of the representative of Borazjan, who issued the death sentence, caught fire." 

According to the IranWire source, Moradi has been under duress to admit igniting the fire. 

"They have instilled so much fear among the people around him that even his friends hesitated to give money for the bail. Hessam is sociable, and prior to this incident he had many friends. However, Borazjan is a small town, and the security forces’ threats have stifled people's willingness to offer money."