Mohammad was 16 years old when he was imprisoned for an alleged murder. He was initially assigned a court appointed attorney but after saving some money, his mother contacted Nasrin Sotoudeh who is an Iranian attorney specialized in juvenile cases. Mrs. Sotoudeh represents other minors facing execution in Iran. Sina Paymard is one of them.

Soon after Mohammad Mousavi’s mother hired her own attorney, she was contacted by Mr. Marvi, an official of Iran’s judiciary in the central city of Shiraz where they reside. Mr. Marvi told Ms. Mousavi not to publicize her son’s execution verdict and to fire her new attorney and in return he promised that Mohammad would not be executed because he was only 16 at the time of the alleged crime. Relying on the Iranian official’s promise , the desperate mother told the new attorney not to proceed with defending her son. She also avoided talking to media or human right advocates about her son’s situation.

On April 22, 2007 she was contacted by the Iranian authorities, But what she heard was not the promised news of commuting of her son’s death penalty. Instead she was told:

” Your son was executed this morning, please make necessary arrangements to collect his body”.

The execution orders of minors in Iran require direct approval (Estizan) of Iran’s head of judiciary, Ayatollah Sharudi.  The Judiciary of Islamic Republic of Iran did not even extend Mohammad and his mother their most basic human right of a saying good bye to each other. Mohammad was 19 at the time of execution. Ms. Mousavi has not heard from Mr. Marvi anymore.

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