TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iran’s judiciary said Tuesday that it commuted a death sentence for a tycoon to 20 years in prison after he returned around $2.1 billion in assets from illegally selling oil abroad, the official IRNA news agency reported. Babak Zanjani, 48, was sentenced to death in 2016 over a number of charges, including money laundering, forgery and fraud that disrupted the country’s economy. IRNA quoted judiciary spokesman Asghar Jahangir as saying that an appeal for amnesty by Zanjani was reviewed and his death sentence was “commuted to a 20-year prison term after approval by the Supreme Leader.“ Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has the final say on all state matters and occasionally issues pardons. Jahangir said as part of Zanjani’s 2016 sentence, he had the right to an amnesty or commutation of his death sentence if he returned the assets, compensated for damages and expressed regret for wrongdoing. The spokesman said that Zanjani cooperated with the judiciary to locate the assets abroad in recent years while he was in prison, and all the money was returned. |
Bryce Miller twirls another gem and leads the Mariners past the Cubs 4A Supreme Court social media ruling could set new free speech standardsRudy Gobert's big night lifts Timberwolves past Hawks and into a firstRetiring Chairman Sean McManus leaves CBS Sports with its critical properties locked up longJalen Green has 26 points and Houston cruises to 116Max Fried has strong outing against Marlins after uncharacteristically poor start to seasonLazio booed by own fans but Anderson leads from the front in 4International migrants were attracted to large urban counties last year, Census Bureau data showsNew Jersey officials drop appeal of judge's order to redraw Democratic primary ballotElly De La Cruz homers again as the Reds pound the White Sox 11