Four Defendants in the Pakdasht Case Remain at Risk of the Death Penalty
HRANA and CHRI both report that Maryam Hodavand, Ehsan Hosseinipour Hesarlou, Matin Mohammadi, and Erfan Amiri are facing death-penalty proceedings tied to the January 2026 protests and serious fair-trial concerns.
Reviewed and published by: HumanInChain Editorial Team · · Updated
On April 27, 2026, HRANA reported that Maryam Hodavand, Ehsan Hosseinipour Hesarlou, Matin Mohammadi, and Erfan Amiri had been sentenced to death in connection with the fire at the Seyyed al-Shohada mosque in Pakdasht during the January 2026 protest period. HRANA said a source close to the families reported that the death sentences of Hosseinipour Hesarlou, Mohammadi, and Amiri had recently been upheld and referred to the sentence-enforcement branch.
In its April 30, 2026 report, the Center for Human Rights in Iran (CHRI) identified Maryam Hodavand as a 45-year-old mother of two who had been arrested during the January 2026 protests and sentenced to death. CHRI also reported that her three co-defendants, Ehsan Hosseinipour Hesarlou, 18, Matin Mohammadi, 17, and Erfan Amiri, 17, had reportedly had their death sentences upheld and sent for implementation.
Both sources describe serious fair-trial concerns. HRANA said the case relied in large part on attributed confessions and opaque evidentiary claims. CHRI reported that Hodavand was denied access to an independent lawyer and that the case involved allegations related to the killing of two Basij members, the burning of a mosque, and destruction of public property. Until the final outcome is clarified, HumanInChain is recording the group as facing the death penalty.