IRAN - Omid Moradi executed in Ahvaz on May 24

May 24, 2026 - IRAN. Omid Moradi executed in Ahvaz on May 24

A ‘minor’

He was arrested at just 16 years old after taking the blame for a murder to save his friend.

According to information Iran Human Rights obtained on September 30, Omid Moradi, a 37-year-old man from Izeh, was executed in Ahvaz Sepidar Prison on 24 May 2026.

Omid Moradi, born on 28 July 1988, was arrested in the spring of 2005 and sentenced for murder.

A source told IHR: "His friend, Omid Davoodi, had committed the murder. They told Omid, who was a child at the time and understood nothing of the consequences, to step forward and say he was an accomplice so his friend would not be executed. Omid agreed. However, a few years later, his friend, the actual killer, was released from prison and immediately fled the country. The court then issued a qisas sentence against Omid due to the principal defendant's flight and Omid's initial confession."

The source added, regarding the denial of Omid's right to a fair trial: "Omid had a court-appointed lawyer. A privately retained lawyer requested one billion tomans from the family, an amount they could not afford. Omid was held in a juvenile correction and rehabilitation centre before being transferred to Ahvaz Sepidar Prison at the age of 19. He repeatedly stressed his innocence in court, stating that he had taken the blame for another person's crime, but the court rejected his statements."

Omid Moradi developed severe respiratory issues in prison and grew extremely weak and frail due to illness. In 2021, the same friend who had allegedly committed the murder and fled the country arranged for Omid's temporary medical furlough through a lawyer by posting a 15 billion toman bail bond. However, he spent only a year outside prison before being returned to serve his sentence. 

At the time of writing, his execution has not been reported by domestic media in Iran.