Iran’s hard-line judge pays fine for murder of young man

Iran Focus: Tehran, Oct. 23 – A court ruling in the northern town of Rudsar that only imposed a fine on a hard-line judge accused of shooting a young man to death at point blank has led to public anger, according to the local residents. Iran Focus

Tehran, Oct. 23 – A court ruling in the northern town of Rudsar that only imposed a fine on a hard-line judge accused of shooting a young man to death at point blank has led to public anger, according to the local residents.

Eye-witnesses said the judge was involved in a quarrel with three young men at a petrol station in the town last April. He used a tear gas spray to fend off the young men and, when the dispute continued, pulled out his handgun and shot one of the young men in the head at point blank. The man died instantly.

The trigger-happy judge told the court that the dispute began when he gave a warning to the young men, who were allegedly harassing a woman.

“I fired the first shot into the air to frighten them, but they continued to cause trouble”, the judge, whose name has not been made public, told the court. “So I fired a second shot, and the young man died”.

In a controversial ruling, the court convicted the judge of manslaughter, ordering him to pay a fine.