Masoud Moqadasi, a judge who oversaw a case against now-imprisoned journalist Akbar Ganji, was shot dead in his car after leaving his central Tehran office Tuesday afternoon, said Iranian judiciary spokesman Jamal Karimirad.
Moqadasi headed the Tehran judiciary complex and specialized in cases of social vice, Karimirad told The Associated Press.
It was not immediately clear what, if any, connection there was between the killing and the Ganji case.
As the judge attempted to drive away from his office, the gunman sped up to Moqadasi’s car on a motorcycle and sprayed it with assault rifle fire, killing the judge, Karimirad said. The assailant escaped.
Police blocked the street and cordoned off the shooting scene, Ahmad Qasir Street, also known by its previous name, Bucharest Street. No one has claimed responsibility for the killing.
Karimirad said Moqadasi handled the first case against investigative reporter Ganji, who was jailed in 2000 for reporting that intelligence officials murdered five Iranian dissidents in 1998.
Iran’s Intelligence Ministry later blamed the murders on “rogue agents” in the secret service.
Ganji, who remains on hunger strike, is being treated in Tehran’s Milad Hospital under police guard. His wife, Masoumeh Shafiei, said last week that her husband has lost a lot of weight and is in delicate health.
