Iran’s Judiciary Releases Ex-Official Sentenced To 31 Years For Bribery

Iran’s judiciary says its former deputy was released from prison after serving just 45 months of a 31-year prison term after posting a bail of 3 trillion rials ($6 million).

Before being arrested in July 2019, Akbar Tabari held senior financial and executive positions within the Iranian judiciary for nearly 20 years.

He was jailed for leading a bribery network and accepting multiple bribes personally, sentenced to 31 years in prison, 12 1/2 years in prison for money laundering, and more than 15 years for other crimes that remain undisclosed.

In the announcement of his release, the judiciary claimed that Tabari "did not take any long-term leave during his term" and also "paid the fines he was sentenced to."

Transparency International ranked Iran 150th out of 180 countries in its 2021 Corruption Perception Index as one of the world's most corrupt countries.

As a result of Tabari's release, questions have been raised about the fairness of Iran's judiciary in high-profile cases, showing preferential treatment to former regime officials and those who can buy their way out of jail.

While regime opponents are subjected to immediate secret trials and severe punishment, including those arrested during the recent nationwide protests, the process of reviewing the charges of officials and their affiliates is usually slow, and the sentence is usually suspended after a short period.

The question also remains as to how a former government employee can post a $6 million bail when monthly salaries of top officials is around $1,000.

State media also announced the release of Mehdi Hashemi, the son of former prominent Iranian politician Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, and Mohammad Ali Najafi, a former Tehran mayor and minister of education, suggesting a wave of reprieves for ex regime lackeys in the midst of the Eid festivities.