IRAN - Masoud Molavi Vardanjani

IRAN - Turkey. Abdul Wahab Kocak Sentenced To Life In Prison

July 7, 2022:

Abdul Wahab Kocak, Accused Of Killing Iranian Dissident In Turkey, Sentenced To Life In Prison
Masoud Molavi Vardanjani, who had published documents on his Telegram channel accusing Iran's judiciary and security forces of corruption and assassinating opposition figures, was shot dead in November 2019 in Istanbul.
Turkish media reported on July 7 that Abdul Wahab Kocak was sentenced to life in prison for the murder of Masoud Molavi Vardanjani, who was shot dead in November 2019 in Istanbul.
Vardanjani had repeatedly accused Iran's judiciary and security forces of financial corruption and assassination of opposition figures by publishing documents on his Telegram channel.
Kocak was among 14 defendants who were sentenced in the case on July 6. Three others were sentenced to 15 years, 12 years, and six months, respectively.
A Turkish police report published in March 2020 said Vardanjani had an “unusual profile” and had worked in cybersecurity at Iran’s Defense Ministry before becoming a critic of the Iranian regime.
A senior U.S. administration official said in April 2020 that Washington had grounds to believe that Iran's Intelligence and Security Ministry was directly involved in Vardanjani’s killing. Iran has denied that any consulate staff had been involved in Vardanjani's shooting death. Sabah newspaper of Turkey earlier reported that Mohammadreza Naserzadeh, an Iranian diplomat, is accused of handing over fake identification documents to Ali Esfanjani, who is accused of being the mastermind behind the plot to kill Vardanjani.
According to the decision of the Istanbul Court of First Instance, the criminal case of Naserzadeh, an employee of the Iranian consulate in Turkey, along with Ali Esfanjani and Naji Sharifi Zindashti, among the other defendants in this case, will be heard separately.

https://www.rferl.org/a/man-accused-killing-iranian-dissident-turkey-sentenced-life/31933620.html