Hamid Ghassemi-Shall
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Hamid Ghassemi-Shall | |
|---|---|
| Born | Circa 1967 Iran |
| Occupation | Shoe salesman |
| Criminal charge | Espionage |
| Criminal penalty | Death (later reduced to five years imprisonment) |
| Criminal status | Released (along with 80 prisoners) |
| Spouse | Antonella Mega |
Hamid Ghassemi-Shall (Persian: حمید قاسمی-شال) (born circa 1967[1]) is an Iranian-Canadian computer technician who was arrested by Iran on espionage charges in 2008 and sentenced to death the following year. The Canadian government and senate called for a stay of execution,[2] and Amnesty International began a letter-writing campaign on his behalf.[3]
He was freed in 2013, and returned to Toronto the same year.[4]
Born in Iran, Ghassemi-Shall moved to Canada in 1990 following the Islamic Revolution.[1] He holds citizenship in both countries.[5] He met his future wife, Italian-Canadian Antonella Mega, in 1995 while working at a shoe store in Toronto, and married her within the year.[2][6]
Espionage conviction
Ghassemi-Shall traveled to Iran in May 2008 to visit his mother, who was unwell. He had last traveled to the country in 2004, on the first anniversary of his father's death. While Ghassemi-Shall was in Iran, his older brother Alborz was arrested, and Ghassemi-Shall's Canadian passport was seized along with other family documents. Ghassemi-Shall reported to the police station at the end of the month to retrieve his passport, but was also arrested.[7]
In late 2009, Ghassemi-Shall was convicted of espionage for Mujahideen e-Khalq (MEK). The basis of the charge was an e-mail he allegedly sent to Alborz requesting information on the MEK's behalf. Ghassemi-Shall's family has denied that such an e-mail was written or sent.[8]
Initially told his sentence would be life imprisonment, Ghassemi-Shall was later sentenced to death by an Iranian court.[7] Alborz died in Evin prison in January 2010. Iranian authorities attributed the death to stomach cancer,[8] while a Toronto Sun reporter called the circumstances of the death "mysterious".[5]
According to Ghassemi-Shall's wife, he spent nineteen months in solitary confinement and had been physically abused by his guards.[9] Despite his dual citizenship, he was also denied visits from the Canadian consulate.[10]
In April 2012, Ghassemi-Shall's sister was told that his execution was imminent.[8]
Persian media sources reported on September 23, 2013, that Ghassemi-Shall was released after his sentence was reduced from death to five years imprisonment. He was released after having served five years and four months, and returned to Canada on October 10.[11][12]
