Saeed Malekpour’s death sentence has been rescinded by the Iranian judiciary.
Malekpour’s lawyer, Mahmoud Alizadeh Tabatabayi, told the Mehr News Agency that his client had been sentenced to death and the sentence had been approved by the Supreme Court. He added, however, that Malekpour has “repented from his actions”, allowing the judiciary to cancel the sentence.
According to Alizadeh Tabatabayi, Malekpour could now face life in prison.
Saeed Malekpour, a computer programmer and Iranian resident of Canada, was arrested in 2007 when he travelled to Iran. He was charged with “insulting sanctities and Islamic beliefs by involvement in setting up pornographic websites.”
Malekpour reportedly admitted to being guilty of the charges in a televised confession on state TV. Following the airing of this program, he wrote a letter to the head of the judiciary claiming the confessions were made under duress, severe torture and promises of release.
