A refugee from Afghanistan who went missing weeks ago in Iran was found dead, Iran’s Khorasan Newspaper reported on Saturday, October 28.
Police discovered the body of 60-year-old Sang Ali in an abandoned enclosure on the outskirts of Mashhad, capital city of Khorasan Razavi.
The news first appeared when Ali’s son revealed in an Instagram post on October 12 that his father had gone in search for work but did not return after five days. He posted CCTV footage of his father walking along with a man.
The post was widely shared on social media as many expressed solidarity with Ali’s family and urged authorities to address the issue.
Ali’s family had also filed a missing person’s report to the Khorasan Razavi police station which led to a search operation by the police.
A police investigation revealed that an Iranian citizen named Hamid K, 35, lured Ali into a labor job to work on a farming field in a town in Mashhad and murdered him on a grape field, according to the Khorasan Newspaper. Police said Hamid K was the man as shown in the CCTV footage shared by Ali’s son.
The suspect reluctantly acknowledged his crime.
“I hired him [Sang Ali] to work in a farming field. When we reached a grape field, owned by one of my relatives, located in Barqi village, he declined to work. I hit him with a stone on his head after he abused me during our conversation,” the suspect was quoted in the Khorasan Newspaper.
The police have sent the body for autopsy.
After the killing, the suspect contacted a psychiatric hospital where he remained at the time of a criminal investigation. Psychiatrists who examined the suspect said they “do not believe he has any mental health conditions.”
Khorasan Newspaper report indicates that as the criminal investigation into the murder of Sang Ali continues, it could reveal further “strange” clues.
Meanwhile, Ali’s family said they want justice from the Iranian authorities.
