On July 27, 2024, the Tehran Economic Security Police forces sealed the Farda-e-Eghtesad Media Studio.
According to a source informed by the Defending Free Flow of Information (DeFFI), on Thursday, the Economic Security Police forces sealed the Farda-e-Eghtesad media studio without providing a clear explanation.
During the sealing of the studio, the officers presented an ambiguous warrant to the Farda-e-Eghtesad media officials and the managers of Kian Financial Group. This warrant cited the use of equipment in the studio that had not been imported through official channels as the reason for this legal action.
The source who spoke to DeFFI stated that the Economic Security Police officers denied any connection between the sealing of the Farda-e-Eghtesad studio and the seizure of this media outlet in February of the previous year, without providing further details.
On Thursday, the studio of this visual media outlet was sealed under the accusation of using “smuggled” equipment, despite the fact that the studio and its equipment were sealed for 20 days in February of the previous year when the Farda-e-Eghtesad was seized, all technical equipment was inspected, and some of the equipment was confiscated. The re-sealing of the Farda-e-Eghtesad studio four months after the first incident, this time under the accusation of not paying taxes on the used equipment, raises doubts about the repetition of extrajudicial actions against this media outlet.
On February 5, 2024, in an unprecedented event, the Tehran Economic Security Police forces entered the Farda-e-Eghtesad editorial office and detained all members of the editorial team in the Kian building in Argentina Square, Tehran. After the families of the Farda-e-Eghtesad journalists gathered in front of the Kian building and the event was publicized, some of the detainees were gradually released.
Among the journalists still detained in the Farda-e-Eghtesad editorial office, Ali Mirzakhani, the editor-in-chief of this media outlet, was released on February 8, and Behzad Bahmannejad, deputy editor-in-chief of Farda-e-Eghtesad, Ali Tasnimi, a radio presenter for the Farda-e-Eghtesad, Nikan Khabazi, studio manager, and Mehrdad Asgari, a video journalist for this media outlet, were transferred from the Farda-e-Eghtesad editorial office to the Shapour police station on February 9.
Behzad Bahmannejad and Mehrdad Asgari were released from custody on February 15, after 10 days of temporary detention. The Farda-e-Eghtesad resumed its activities on February 24, after being suspended for 20 days, and Nikan Khabazi was released on March 4 after nearly a month of detention. However, Ali Tasnimi, the last detained member of Farda-e-Eghtesad, spent more than two months in custody.