Karaj: Aydin Shari'atmadar, death row prisoner, shot dead while attempting escape

Hengaw – Thursday, June 12, 2025

Aydin Shari'atmadar, a death row prisoner held in Ghezel Hesar Prison in Karaj, was shot and killed by Iranian security forces while attempting to escape from Imam Ali Hospital in Karaj.

According to information received by Hengaw Organization for Human Rights, on Saturday, June 7, 2025, Shari'atmadar—who had spent nearly 20 years in Ghezel Hesar Prison and had been transferred to the hospital due to internal bleeding—was fatally shot during an escape attempt.

Sources familiar with the incident reported that Shari'atmadar tried to flee the hospital with the help of armed people believed to be relatives. During the attempt, he was directly targeted and killed by government forces.

The Chief Justice of Alborz Province claimed that the prisoner had been brought to Imam Ali Hospital for an endoscopy. There, with the coordinated help of a woman, he obtained a firearm, threatened the guards, freed himself from his handcuffs and shackles, and tried to escape.

According to the official statement, Shari'atmadar was shot during the escape and died on the scene. The woman assisting him was arrested on-site.

Following the news of his death, fellow prisoners at Ghezel Hesar staged a protest, chanting “Death or Freedom” and preventing prison officials from closing the yard gates. The protest prompted a heightened security presence and limited clashes were reported.

Shari'atmadar had been arrested on charges of premeditated murder and sentenced to death by the Islamic Republic’s judiciary. He had spent approximately two decades behind bars in Ghezel Hesar Prison.