The person at the center of this case
Iranian dissidents and a U.S. citizen targeted for kidnapping
Justice for Iranian dissidents and a U.S. citizen targeted for kidnapping — the trail went cold in 2026, but the truth hasn't.
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Why has Kiya Sadeghi remained in Iran despite the federal warrant, and what is his current operational status?
What specific payments and communications did Sadeghi facilitate to the private investigator, and can they be traced?
Who is the U.S. citizen targeted in this conspiracy, and were they successfully kidnapped or lured?
Kiya Sadeghi and three co-conspirators are wanted for allegedly orchestrating a kidnapping and extortion scheme targeting Iranian dissidents and a U.S. citizen on behalf of the Iranian government. Since 2019, the conspiracy allegedly involved luring expatriate critics to locations where they were arrested, kidnapped, and sent to Iran for imprisonment or execution. Sadeghi, believed to be residing in Iran, facilitated payments to a private investigator in the United States to conduct surveillance and plan kidnappings of anti-regime activists.
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Beyond the top three above — each detail below could be the thread that pulls this case open.
What information do the Iranian dissidents who were successfully kidnapped and imprisoned possess about the conspiracy?
How many victims were lured or kidnapped as part of this scheme, and in which countries did these incidents occur?
Even the smallest detail could be the key to solving this case.
Official wording
Conspiracy to Kidnap; Conspiracy to Violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act; Conspiracy to Commit Bank and Wire Fraud; Conspiracy to Commit Money Laundering Caution: Kiya Sadeghi, Alireza Shahvaroghi Farahani , Mahmoud Khazein , and Omid Noori are wanted for allegedly conspiring to kidnap, to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, to commit bank and wire fraud, and to commit money laundering. The charges relate to the actions by the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran to target Iranian dissidents.
The regime views these dissidents as enemies of the state because of their criticism of the regime’s human rights violations, and their public statements against the Iranian Government. Since at least approximately 2019, the Government of Iran has allegedly lured several expatriate Iranian dissidents to locations where they were arrested or kidnapped and sent to Iran for imprisonment and execution.
The men also allegedly conspired to kidnap and/or lure a United States citizen, as well as victims residing in other countries. They allegedly hired a private investigator to conduct surveillance on an individual in furtherance of a plot to kidnap or harm the victim based on their anti-regime activism.
Sadeghi allegedly facilitated payments and communications to a private investigator in the United States in furtherance of the kidnapping plot. In July of 2021, Sadeghi, Khazein, Noori, and Farahani were indicted in the United States District Court, Southern District of New York, on the charges listed above and federal warrants were issued for their arrests.
Remarks: Sadeghi is a resident of Iran.
Government of Iran allegedly begins luring expatriate Iranian dissidents to locations for arrest and kidnapping
Sadeghi, Khazein, Noori, and Farahani indicted in U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York; federal warrants issued for arrests