INVESTIGATION INTO POSSIBLE SANCTIONS, TAX, AND IMMIGRATION VIOLATIONS RELATED TO THE IRANIAN REGIME

The rule of law is a founding principle of the United States, preserving the rights of all people in this great democratic society against inequity and corruption. Today, Iranian Americans are asking that justice be applied to family members of the Iranian regime’s current and former high-ranking officials who have established lavish lives in this country in possible violation of U.S. immigration, tax, and sanctions laws. In this petition, we plead for immediate investigations into the actions of these individuals, as inaction against their potential misconduct and that of members of the Iranian regime will have global consequences.

1. We are the Iranian American community of the United States. We are comprised of hardworking and law-abiding individuals, and our community ranks amongst the highest-educated immigrant communities in the Country year after year. While there are no statistics to rely on, an estimate of over one million Iranian Americans have made the United States their beloved home.

2. The Iranian regime is one of the most oppressive in the world and was rightfully designated a state sponsor of terrorism by the U.S. Department of State. It has committed serious and repeated human rights violations since its inception in 1979 and has the highest number of executions worldwide after China. It has a long history of cracking down on peaceful protests in the most vicious and inhumane manners, without any regard for the rights or well-being of its citizens.

3. The Iranian regime is also one of the most corrupt and least transparent regimes in the world. In 2021, Transparency International's 2021 Corruption Perception Index ranked the Islamic Republic 150th out of 180 countries as perceived to have higher levels of public sector corruption. Iran's ranking has fallen steadily since a high of 130th in 2017. The CPI generally defines corruption as an "abuse of entrusted power for private gain."

4. Given the widespread corruption in Iran, the Iranian American community is gravely concerned that embezzled resources and funds have been transferred through the migration of people connected to the Iranian Regime to the United States. Many adult children of the Iranian regime’s current and former high-ranking officials have successfully obtained visas, immigrated to the US, and established lavish lives in this country.

5. There is also a substantial probability that many of these officials and their children have lied on their visa applications. We are aware of a few instances in which the children of former hostage takers are now living safely in the US. The head of the Basij (a paramilitary organization directly linked and operated by the IRCG) of the Sharif University was able to obtain a US visa in or about 2017, while many Iranian families who have had no relation to the regime await long processing times for their chances to leave Iran.

6. Because of the misconduct of the regime, the Iranian people are struggling daily under immense financial pressure. They are unable to immigrate easily, as they cannot obtain visas and are subject to lengthy administrative proceedings and background checks. Many are banned from entering the US and are separated from their families abroad due to their history of mandatory military service with the IRGC.

7. For the Iranian Americans who believe in the foundation of law in the U.S. and its need to be upheld, and for our brethren in Iran who are forced to live under the consequences of the Iranian regime’s destructive behavior while family members of the regime escape to the U.S., we ask that our claims be investigated thoroughly to ensure compliance by all with the immigration, tax and sanctions laws of the U.S.

Recent highlights of the Iranian Regime’s Oppression and Corruption

8. This September 22 years old Mahsa Amini was arrested by the Iranian regime’s morality police for allegedly wearing her compulsory hijab improperly. She was killed in police custody due to forced trauma to her head by the police.  

9. Mahsa’s murder sparked nationwide protests in Iran, with women taking off their compulsory hijabs and demanding freedom of expression. The demonstrations were, once again, met with the regime’s iron fist, using tactics such as cutting off the internet, beating, and jailing protestors, resulting in over 150 people being killed and thousands being injured and imprisoned. Those killed include children and teenagers, such as 16-year-old Nika Shakarami, 20-year-old Hadis Najafi, 16-year old Sarina Esmailzadeh, and many more, all of whom died violently.

10. The Iranian regime has responded to these seeking freedom of speech and expression by shutting down Iran’s internet access to curb freedom of speech and assembly further, resulting in designations by the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of seven senior leaders within Iran’s government and security apparatus as well as Iran’s Morality Police, its senior leadership, and other senior leaders of Iran’s security organizations.

11. This oppression is just the most recent in a long history of the Iranian regime silencing its citizens through brutal violence inside and outside its borders.

12. Over the course of 2019-2020, the regime killed over 1500 protestors during the Bloody Aban protests, which were caused by a spike in fuel prices. [6]

13. In 1999, the Iranian regime directed riot police to raid student dormitories at night following peaceful daytime student protests for freedom of the press. The raid sparked demonstrations, during which four were killed, 200 were injured, and more than seventy students disappeared. In addition to an estimated 1,200–1,400 detainees, the "whereabouts and condition" of five students named by Human Rights Watch who are believed to be detained by Iranian authorities remain unknown.[4]

14. Furthermore, on January 8, 2020, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) shot down Ukrainian Flight PS752, killing 176 passengers and crew, five days after the assassination of Qasim Soleimani. [5]

15. Therefore, we, the Iranian American Community, respectfully ask:

a. That the US intelligence community to create and provide a list of the children of Iranian officials residing in the United States to the Department of Homeland Security, Department of Treasury, and the US Department of State;

b. That the Department of Homeland Security reopen the immigrant and non-immigrant visa applications of the persons enlisted;

c. That the OFAC (Office of Foreign Assets Control) investigates the enlisted persons for possible sanction violations, including transferring of unauthorized funds to the US;

d. That the Department of Treasury investigates the enlisted persons for tax violations to include not reporting income from Iran and/or other foreign countries;

e. That the DHS (Department of Homeland Security) refrains from further granting any immigrant and non-immigrant status to any persons connected to the Iranian Regime; and

f. That the Department of State refrains from issuing visas to persons connected to the Iranian Regime including but not limited the children of Iranian officials.