Iranian Judiciary Sentences Follower of Erfan-e-Halgheh to 6 Years and 8 Months of Imprisonment in Tehran

Hengaw: Tuesday, July 16, 2024

Neda Fotouhi, a follower of Erfan-e-Halgheh, a former lecturer at Allameh Tabataba'i University, and a resident of Tehran, has been sentenced by the judiciary of the Islamic Republic of Iran to a total of 6 years and 8 months of imprisonment.

According to a report received by the Hengaw Organization for Human Rights, on Saturday, July 13, 2024, Neda Fotouhi, an engineering graduate in IT management and a former lecturer at Allameh Tabataba'i University and Azad University, was sentenced by Branch 36 of the Tehran Court of Appeals, presided over by Judge Abbasali Houzan, to 6 years and 8 months of imprisonment.

Previously, Fotouhi was sentenced by Branch 26 of the Tehran Revolutionary Court, presided over by Judge Iman Afshari, to 3 years and 8 months of imprisonment for "assembly and collusion against the internal and external security of the country" and 3 years for "propaganda against the government through membership in the Erfan-e-Halgheh group," totaling 6 years and 8 months. This verdict has been upheld by the Tehran Court of Appeals.

Informed sources report that the case against Fotouhi was built on forced confessions obtained under torture in Ward 209 of Evin Prison. According to the law of aggregation of sentences, the maximum enforceable sentence is 3 years and 8 months.

Neda Fotouhi was previously arrested in October 2023 during a raid by security forces on her private residence without a judicial warrant and was transferred to Ward 209 of Evin Prison in Tehran.

Erfan-e-Halgheh, also known as Erfan-e-Halqeh, Erfan-e-Kayhani, Erfan Kaihan, Cosmic Mysticism, Interuniversal Mysticism, and Mysticism of the Ring, is a spiritual movement started in Iran by mystic Mohammad Ali Taheri four decades ago. The movement promotes ideas and practices that seek to establish a connection between the individual and cosmic consciousness.