Abdolreza Ali Haghnejad

Abdolreza Ali Haghnejad, also known as Matthias, has a history of arrest dating back to 2006.

On February 10, 2019, Matthias was arrested during a raid on his home. Other members of the Church of Iran in Rasht were also arrested around the same time. In July, a judge set the bail for Matthias at an exorbitantly high level. Being unable to pay his bail he was transferred to Evin Prison.

In October 2019, Matthias was sentenced to five years in prison for “Acting Against National Security”, and “Promoting Zionist Christianity”. He appealed his sentence but in March 2020 his appeal was rejected. In August 2021 Matthias was transferred to Anzali Prison. On December 30, 2021, Matthias was ‘conditionally released’ from prison pending a review of his case.

Re-Arrested after ‘Conditional Release’

In January 2022, just two weeks after being ‘conditionally released’, Matthias was unexpectedly summoned and sent back to Anzali Prison, having been told that a different Supreme Court judge had overturned the ruling of a 2014 appeal court, which had acquitted him of a previous six-year sentence for ‘Propagating Christianity’. He is now serving that sentence.

In July 2022, Matthias was given leave from prison, which was extended multiple times. However at a Christmas gathering in December 2022, Matthias was re-arrested alongside two other church members. A week later, his wife Anahita was also detained.

On July 9, 2023, Matthias was flown from Rasht airport to Minab Prison in the far south of Iran, 1000 miles from home and family, and told he must serve the remainder of his sentence there. He was not given the chance to say goodbye to his wife or daughter.