2020/9/18 The Ma Wh Ref ed S The Ne Y ke

Complete o r order no
and recei e a free tote.

See op ions

A Re o e a La ge Se embe 21, 2020 I e

The F.B.I. tried to recruit an Iranian scientist as an

informant. When he balked, the payback was brutal.

B La a Seco
Se e be 14, 2020

In court, an F.B.I. agent said that he met Sirous Asgari, a materials scientist, to see if he might be “helpful to the Bureau. I ai
b C ai e Me ch i

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2020/9/18 The Ma Wh Ref ed S The Ne Y ke

A a dd ea e , b a e a c a d . He ad e e ee A e ca e
e I a . Sc e ce da d a e a d, a I a a e ad ce a d, a d A a be e ed be .
H ce cc a ed e be, e a d d e a acce b e. T a a a b da e a d
ca e d e ee e ec a e c a e ee ed a a . He ad c de ce e ca ac c
a a e a e .
Complete o r order no
I ec d a e e F.B.I. a e de a d e c e ce, A a dand recei
e , e ae free tote.
d ee e a e. He de c bed e
ea a d e ab a e e a ad a ac ed Ca e We e , a d e a ed e e e a ae a
See op ions
e a a ed ea a e e a ,a dc d be a e ed b e ee de d a c e. B e e a e
a ed e be a a ea ee a a dc e a e ec dd ae d.

T a , Fa e e e e M a ad, a d ad a ed A a e a e e .I e , e
a e d eA a C e e a d, ea d be d.

He a a a ed a e ede a c e a d de e ed e La e C Ad De e Fac ,a a - ec a
Pa e e, O .F e e e e - da e d e d a ac ,A a cc ed a a ed ce . L
bed, e c d ea e a e c ea .

T
e F.B.I. ad ea be e e ed a a eA a .S a U e a Ia e e ec ca ,a d e
e a d ae a c e ce c d be ed b d e a d ce e a ea a e e
P e be e de a d e e e a e .A a c ce e ae ec a de e e. I e e
e a ed de c e e, e d e, d a e e c e a a be a 2018. I a ea e ,
ca ea e e e, ca e c a ab b. T a a be e e .

A a ca ee a a e e e ea . He a da ed e e e d ce ed e ead a a e ec
c c e, : e ee e ace b ec a a aed c e c ac .A ca be ee
a d a ca c c e. A c ab ce e e a d a e ea e e e, a d
e e a be e ded , ea , c d, d , e e ce be b d d, a d e e
d a aa e .

A a a c a e a a S a ac ed 1994. He a a e e ea c ea P .D. de a d ad ed eac .

C ac a d c ea -c , a ea - a ed ace a d e- ed a e , e ea e, e e , ac a a
a cca a e ed e bea .

P e a S a e e ed e aa e a d a ced e de a e d a a d e e c ac . A a
ad e Ia e e ,a e a de e d e e a- b e a ; e a a c d c a ea b
d a a e- ed c a , c a d c - e a ce, ea - e a ea a
ea .T e c ac b e e e d ed a dd a , c e ed e
A a a d de .

I e a a a c ad bee a ac e I a .I e e -e , e - c ea e a be ee I a
a d d e , e e c e ed: a c d be c a ed a d a e, a cab e b a a d
c a ea ,c d be ed I a . Ma e a c e ce add ed a ea b de .

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2020/9/18 The Ma Wh Ref ed S The Ne Y ke

Complete o r order no
A and
a recei e aa free
a tote.
I
2017, a I a a a a a S U Sa a
D ba . T a a , a , Fa , a a a A a, .T
See op ions
a a a a b a .T a a :P D a T a
a ba Ia a U.S. a a A a a a .
Ma b a a b a ba a b a a , a Sa D a a a
a a a a .

A a , a - a , U.S. a .I , a a a a a
D U , P a a, a a A a .H a Sa a a b U.S.,
a a A a .H ,M a a a Za a, a a A a a a
.A a a a a S a U T , T a ,a a a
A a ab a ; a , a , C a , a a a
Ca W R U .

A a a Fa b a a N Y J 21, 2017. T a M a a , ,a
Ca a, Za a a a a a .B A a
b a J.F.K. a a .

T a A a a , a aa F.B.I. a a a .A a a a , a
,a a a a a a a .H
a a , a a ,a b a C a ,
a a a .I , ba a b a a a a .

A a a E ,b a .H a a b a .H a a -
a a - a ,a ,a a a a a .S ,
, a b a ,a a a .

A , a a A a a - a .I a a , a a ,a
a .T A a , a a .I a - a a a Ca
W a a , a a a a a A a a a a
a b Ia a .T , a a a, b a a
.T a b a a a , a - a b , ,a a
.

T a ,A a a .T a Ca W a a
a a .I a a , ab .

W a a a , a A a .

T b , .

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A a c a a a c S a , c a a U.S. a a c ab a a ,
a a a ac a c a c . I 2011, a
a a , ac - .T a a,A a P P ,a a c a a Ca W .
T a a -c c ab a a a - - -a ,a ac c ac .A a
a b a abba ca a,a Ca .
Complete o r order no
H a a b ab a acc a a and recei ae a: free
I a tote.
c c a a ,a a
c a a U.S. .B ac a ca ,a A ca a
See op ions
a, N b , 2012, a a c c .A a a
a N Y , a a a b a c a a a -c c ab a Ca .

A H , c c a ab, A a .T a a
c a a H1B, c a U.S. I a , c a Ca a a .
A a a , a a bac a c a a a . (H a a
ca a c a a a .)

T c a a a .B a bH a A a a a
a c c a - a a a , S a C a a a -a - b -
a ac ba O .I - - a , c a a a ab, a
a ca S a C S ac A a Ma a . Ca c a ac c
a a S a c c a c b .

I 2000, S a c a - a ca b a ,a c c ca b a a
, c a ac a a b a a a a a c .T a a A a a a a
a a a b b c c ,a a c a a c, A a
c a a c a .H a b .T ca b a
c a a c a a a a a a .T a a c a
c a a b ab , b a.

A a a b a Ca W a a a c a b .I
Ma c , 2013, H a aa ca a c a c b a . Acc A a , , T U.S.
c c ab ac U Sa . A a c Ca a
ac ,a H a a a c a .

O a A ,A a c ab ca c a b a a .T ca b S ca A
Ma O , F.B.I.; bac , O a ca a a A a ca .W A a ca ,a
a c a c a b . H ca P a a a c ,b b ,a
A a , , b ca a a a B a a c a a a .F a ,
ca O ,a a a a , a a ca ac .A A a a ,
a a ac .

O a b a a a ,a a a a a .L A a , a . Wa a a
ac c a ?O a ,A a a .O a a a - ,
a , W I a , I a . H a A a a c C a ,a A a
a abba ca , b , ac a I a .H c a O a F.B.I. a b b

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e c f aa ca .F ,a d e e a dd a a e d e e be a d: e U.S.
e e a e b e.

O ee ed a eA a c a ea . He e ed e a dd a f e d a a e, c ec d
e f a e a e caf . A a ea ed a e d a ed a a .O a ee a e . He a
ec a a f a .
Complete o r order no
and recei e a free tote.
A a ed a e a e a e a d fe c . He d a , e a d, a ea e f e F.B.I.
H ab e e edd e e a c e .A a ed a Ca e aSee
d ope ions e I a , fee a e ad
d a c ed e ea a .

T
e a e a e a S ec a A e T B ,ac e e e ce ce a eCe ea d ed ce f e
F.B.I. H f c a I a , a U.S. ad e a e a a ae f ec a ee e B ea , e e a ec ed a e
a e a a e .

Ia a e d e U.S. e ea f e B ea . Ha f a d e I a a a a a d I a a -A e ca
a e de c bed c a ac e e, a d e a e ca d e e da , beca e eI a a e e ee a
e a a a ad dea a U.S. e e ce a e c a a e a .S eI a a d e f e
c e a fede a a e , ca d e c a ed, ef a acce ed. O e de c bed e ea ed de a d , e ed ea , a d e a
be a ea . T e B ea ec c e e e ce a e c e a e a e e d e c
ac e ee ca e : a e f e ab e ea e e a e e e e bec e f a .T e d
d ce a ce a a e de f e a c a , e e ea e a dc e b e
e de a d .

La e 2012, B a f a f a a Ca e a a Ia a a a a a a ab e e. B
a e e ed a :a fe f S a fU e d b ed d be ac a ed ce
a c ea e ee Ia a dA a a a a e ab ,a dd a e f a
A e ca e e . Te ,O ae e ed ac ceed a e e e A a edd ee f e ce
c d be e a e f f e a ea .

B ad bee A a ce Dece be , a d b e A He e , e Ca e c e , e ea ed a A a
ab a e e ca ed c ea .S ,B e a ed e e ada a f e fA a e- a . He ed
a A a ad bee c ac Ca e a e bef e a a,a d a d e C e e a d e ad e c
e e e a S a f.

I Feb a , B a ed a O a ae a a ea c a a f a ea ,ca bab e ca e be e e a

A a a a U.S. a c . I a a da ,B e ed A a e- a I a ,a d ed a S a f
U e a a f ded b e e e . (Of c e, a b c c a e.) Pa f e a aef e ea c
a a a e a ed a a ed e c : eS a e Ce e , B e ed, ad ece ed f d f e
U.S. Na f -e ea e ca b a , a d e ea c e a S a f U e e e ed eI a a
Na . B c ed a a e e b a de a ab a c fS a f e Pe a G f a d fK .T e de , ad
ed A a , e e e a e de a e , ad e ab a de ae e ce a cc ee
de A a a ea f e e e.

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The magistrate granted the wiretap, which gave Boggs access to e-mails in Asgari’s Gmail account from as far back as 2011. In
2015, when the wiretap expired, the Bureau secured a new one. The application for the second warrant suggested that F.B.I.
agents had found in Asgari’s e-mails probable cause to believe that he might have violated sanctions, stolen trade secrets, and
committed visa fraud. The agents never found evidence of a sanctions violation, but they did come across a proposal that a student
of Asgari’s had asked him to review: a request for a research institute attached to Iran’s petrochemical industry to fund a project on
low-temperature carburization. Complete o r order no
and recei e a free tote.
For Asgari, the student’s proposal had been a source of irritation, and a waste of time. But the F.B.I. fastened on the exchange as
See op ions
evidence of a conspiracy to expropriate Swagelok’s process for the bene t of Iran’s petrochemical industry. Asgari’s earlier e-mails
to Pirouz, looking for work, could be characterized as prior intent, and the tourist visa as a ploy. Such was the beginning of the
sealed indictment that greeted Asgari upon his return to New York in 2017.

Someone in the F.B.I. may have truly believed that Asgari was funnelling industrial secrets to Iran. But the way the agency
conducted its investigation suggested a shing expedition—and an attempt to push Asgari into becoming an informant.

D
uring Asgari’s rst days in the Lake County jail, in 2017, he emerged from his isolation cell only for meals. The prison
population made him nervous—and the other inmates apparently felt the same way about him. The rst one he befriended
con ded that a rumor had gone around the pod that Asgari was not to be messed with—he was an Iranian scientist who knew
how to blow things up.

Asgari soon got to know many other inmates, in part by playing chess and cards, and he began to educate himself about racial
division and drug addiction in the United States. He prided himself on being able to talk to anybody, and he was soon serving as a
mediator between prisoners having disputes, and as a counsellor on matters of the heart. New prisoners often arrived after dinner
had been served, and Asgari took up a collection for commissary items to feed them. He fought a rearguard battle against
profanity, quitting a game of spades when his opponent exclaimed, “This motherfucker plays good ” Asgari had recently lost his
mother, he explained, and would not be called that name. The inmate later apologized, asking, “Can I call you ‘fucking professor’
instead?”

Asgari taught physics to a small group of inmates. He explained how infrared detectors worked, and how optical scattering
produced rainbows, advancing all the way to quantum mechanics. He found the greatest aptitude among the bank robbers and the
racketeers. He had three such students: one Russian and two African-Americans.

He paid another inmate’s bail. “I knew the minute you walked through that door that you were different—special,” the inmate
later wrote to Asgari, in a rounded, childlike hand. “You intrigued the hell out of me. I knew that when you talked or had
something to say, I should just shut the hell up and listen.”

The rst week of Asgari’s imprisonment, Fatemeh and Mohammad stayed in Cleveland, visiting the jail and looking for a lawyer.
An attorney with a picture of Che Guevara in his office asked for half a million dollars up front, and when Mohammad said that
he couldn’t afford it the lawyer suggested hitting up the Iranian government. The family went with public defenders.

The rst lawyer on the case, a warm and voluble assistant federal public defender named Edward Bryan, tried to get Asgari
released from Lake County on bond. The U.S. Attorney’s office for the Northern District of Ohio suggested a proffer. Asgari
would be temporarily released to a hotel lobby, where a team of F.B.I. agents and prosecutors would join him for a conversation, in
the presence of his attorney.

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I a d, N a, A a eca ed. Ta e a dc a d ac e d a ce. Y a a ?C e e e.

T e ca e. Da e R ed , a ec e U.S. A e ce, a acc a ed b a e e F.B.I. C e e a d e d

ce, a e a e e e Wa , acc d A a .

I B a e - ea a a b c de e de , e ad e e e ed a e e .N a , a de e da ad ed a
ea e ec a e a a a d ded a ab Complete
e c e, c odr order de ano ab e a a e
and recei e a free tote.
e ed c , e c a e e e e e .A a ad acce ed e ec a e a a ,a d e a
e e a e a ed ca e: ea e a ed a e See
e eopa ionse e ce ab Ia . T a a
c e e e ce ca e a e ad a a ade- ec e ca e, B a d e.

T e F.B.I. a e c ed e dc e ,b a ed a ab ec a c d be c ec ed Ia a a d
c ea ca ab e e ea c c A a ad a ed a a d ab c ea e a S a e a e e B ea ad
c ed e- a . A a e ed a e ee e .I ead, e e ded a Pe a a ab e. A a ade
e d a bea beca e e be e ed a e eeded a ec .O e , e e a e ,a a ded ace.
T e bea a deed e ec e ec ed e ab de , e a .T e a? D a e e d
d e e, e e e e e , A a a d.

A e a e e ee e ded a a e a e, e e e e ed A a e ea e b d, ec d a e
b e e .A a e e, a e ad ade c ea a d d a e
e c e e ec a e a a .

U e ea e, e e ed e C e e a d ede a b d , be ed a a e b ace e . B e e e a a e ed a a
eb I a a dC E ce e . T e dc e ,A a a a ed ea , a e a
be : a ad bee a ed a J.F.K., e beca e a a ea a. U e a e a e F.B.I.
e e a a ad c e a e ea ab ac a e e e e ec
e B ea e . O ce e e a e e ed, e F.B.I. e ed a d e e a a e e a.

T e e e e ed de e A a de a a e e d a.W e a e c a ed a d , A a
e a ed c d , a a ac Gea a C . He a ed a e d ae a d e d,
e ee a a a de a .T e e a e a e a La e C ,a d ed e ee
c.

A e e da , a ce dA a a e d be e ea ed e ed a a c ed c ea
a e ed ed de a Ia a e e e ca e. H e a e a a .A a ed e
, a d a e ea ed b d, a a e b ace e a d a c e .

A
a ed a -d - e C e e a d, ee e d ed c , a e c , a d ed a
c a . Fa e e ed ee Oc be , e e e ed I a . He ed e e ca
e e b d e a ca e a d a a a ed c cea e a e e e a d d a e b ace e a d
O e de I.D. a .

T e ec a d e F.B.I. ca e e e ee . Eac e, e e ed e e a ea bec e

a a . T e F.B.I. e c ea a ed a d a a d e be a de a d a eb e B ea
e e dc .T e e e a e a ed ec e ,e e a eadba e dc e . Ed a d B a ,

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A a , a b ,a - a a S N a ,a N a a a
a .

A a a a a a ,b a a a a a a
- a a a b .T ,A a a a a a
aa - a ,a a a ba A a a .H a
Complete o r order no
a a a a a .F a and
a recei
, ae a free
a tote. a, b a ,
.B a a a a a,a a a
See op ions
a .T a .T
.A a a , a Ca , a .

T a a a Ja G .A O N D b P B C ,
1997, G a a a a a S C .G
aa a a a O a 2016 ; S C . I 2018, G
a a a a a a ; S C a a .

B b a ,A a a a ba 2013 a 2015 a a a ,a a
a a .A a , F.B.I. a a a a ba a A a a a .
B 2013 a a a a aB a a a O a C a P A a a
a b a a a .A a a a a ,
a a a a a bab a .H a : U.S. a
a a a a a .

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Complete o r order no
and recei e a free tote.

See op ions

A ga i ha e an I anian hil he ie : Science i ild and ha n h meland. Photograph by Fatemeh Sha iee

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J G a a F a 20, 2018, 2013 a a a a Ia a

Na a a a - a K .I ,G a a a a ,
a a A a a a . A , 2013 a a a a A a a a
a a a Ia a , G . T a a
a a Ia a a . C a B a a a a a a a ,G
a a . Complete o r order no
and recei e a free tote.
A a a : a a .B U.S. A a a G ,a S
See op ions
C , a a, a a a a a a a a a a
a , .M , S C a B a a
a a ,a a a a a a a :a S a C ,A a a a a a
U.S. a a ,a a Ia a a a .

D a G a , a , ,a a ,a a .
B a A a a a a C a , a a M a a N Y ,
a a a ,a Za a Ca a, a
a a Sa .

U a, a A a: a a a a , ,a .I a ,
a ; a a , .H a a a I a .T
a a a a U.S. , a a a a ,a a
a F.B.I. .I a , Ia a a a a U.S., A a
Ia a a a a a .H a a a
a a a a J G ,a a a .

T
a a N 12, 2019. A a , a a a a a , Ia a a , a
a a .T a a a, a a
a .H a a a , a a a a a a ,a .
T a a a a a a .

T a - a , Da R a - a a A a a ,
a S a a a. B aa - a , a a, a .T
a a - a a A a S aC ,a a a a S a
a a - a a a .P aa a , a a a
a a a a A a a a a a ,a - a .

B A a a Ca 2013, - a a a a a a .D a a
.T a a a ,a a a a
a .A , a a a a a , a a a a a
a.T - a a. T a a a a C a a a a
a a a S a a a a .A a a a a G a a
a .I a a , a a .C a a a a
.

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2020/9/18 The Ma Wh Ref ed S The Ne Y ke

The ec f he e ed a e- a ha A ga had f a ded f h Ca e acc h G a acc .I c a ed

da a ha he d b a ed f S age ab he che ca c f he ee bef e a ea ed h ca b . A ga
a e a d ha he had f a ded he e da a h ef f e e : he a e f h h a d ch dd
a ch d a da d f he g ade f ee S age had de ed. A ga had c c ded ha e he he a e ee
defec e e e S age e ee f ca b a .
Complete o r order no
F a , he ec e e ed he a ha A ga de had and
adereceia eeaeafree
ch tote. ec ec ed Ia
e che ca d , gge ga ec -e ea e ca b a . The de had h ed h fe e e e ce,
See op ions
b a g ha , A e ca, A ga had ac ed edge f he ce ha b d Ia e ed. O he e a d, he
de ade c ea ha he had e A ga he a af e b g he e. A ga ae dged he
ec ac cab e.

S ch a he hea f he ec : a ec e A ga e e a ed f a d e e ed, a fa da a e , a d a de a ae h
ga a ha e he e. The aa d e-f a d c ee a . The defe e ed a d a
cha ge .

G
acce ed he defe e .B he a ead d he ca e e : he had f d he a g e ee g,
a dh ed ea f he ec d. U he had d e , he a ed A ga e a he c , b d.
A ga a e a ed he dge ha , ce he ca e a f a d ed, he d e f-de , e g Ia a
c eca gh .

He d d ge he cha ce. The ec , e de e g ha he ca e a g g a , had e f ed ha

ge hed defe A ga de a : he age c c dc ec ec e.N e had J dge G de a ed he
c ha a a ha ea ed he ga e a ached he defe e ab e ha A ga c d.

The fe e a g. A ga had bee ac ed a fa a bef e a fede a dge, b d e d he da

.B a a ea a ce , he g e e a ac g f dc e e . (R ed , he ec , dec ed be e e ed.)

He g g e f-de Ne a e ed he a ha .

Y ec g h e, he a ha d A ga , a d a ched h f he c .

O he ega ea e a ed, a ca e e ce he ec h he bac he defe e, h g a e

b efca e h eB a f ed a d aced. F a , he e ed. Th b h , he a d. I a alwa s b h

T
he da A ga a c ea ed f a cha ge , he bega a e e - h de ce d a a f a , a a ca ce a
e be d he each f he U.S. dca .W h he ea f , he e d be b cd c e , ega
hea g . H fede a defe de c d he h .

He a a e he N hea Oh C ec a Ce e , a ae , Y g , ha h ed b h c c ed c a
a d de a ee . The e e e fea f a ch c e - b ea he he a ed, a d h gh- ec e c ed he d ae
he gh . The f d c e ed h , a d he a ed a c de f a e de h d ed ege ab e a e , b a ed f
he c a .

H d he d f - dd ae, a f he f S La a, I d a, a d Ba g ade h. He a e ed b he e f
ga e had ade h- g e h gh ge a d ched b he dea f g e h had e ec ed

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2020/9/18 The Ma Wh Ref ed S The Ne Y ke

da A e ca. T e a e ea e C b , A a d e. O e a eac e Ta a a e,
e ab B dd . I d e e a ea a c , I ca e , e a d. Se e a e a ee , e ca ed
e; e a ed e e ec a ca d c ec ed. O e da , I d a I ad e a e ec - c c ab
Ne Y , e e e ade. T a , e e ea , e d ea ed a e a
a . I a d a ea ,c e ca a a , e ,a de ec a , e d e. I e
ee e a ed. Complete o r order no
and recei e a free tote.
He ed be e d e e - ec e . O e, M a a, a de ec ed a e e da e a
See op ions
c aba e e ead. A a c ed d , a a c e b a d, a d ea d e e ad a a e
,A a de e ce d , eB ee a a d ac a a ec d ee eb a da d e .T e
e a e ed c de, a d a a d a ed A a a . He d e a a a ed, d d . H
ace e a e, A a d e.

A e e ee , e a e ca e, a d e a ab eed ed ec ec ce . W e a a dc ca ed e ca
a de a ee e e d , a e a ed A a a d dea e ac a d ad ade e
e d d b e e d a d dde e e be d e ca .A a e ed a e de a ee ad d e
a d a ed e c ee. He a ed a e e de a ee d e e a d ,G d b d,
e b d a ae a e d ed e . He e ca bac .

A e ee ,A a a a e ed, e dd e e , Se eca C Ja , T ed . Se eca a e

a Y : e bed a e , aced ab ee ee a a ; a e e; ee e
a ; e ea d .T e e e ec a c c e da de de a ee . A a A a c d a e
a d ed. B c e a e ce c a e e a b .T ea e c ad
a ae de ed a a eade ed b e. I e bee ed ab , e d . D be a
e e.

A a e ea ed c ab ec e ce. H eed a da a , be - a d eace a , ad a ed

Y . A e ee ea e a a e e ca e, I a , e d e.

N e e e , e ad ed. J ac e ee ae, e ed, I I a e be ed b , e d e e e. M e

ca a e e ed . He e a e de e a a ad ed e A e ca ae d a d
c e. T e e b e dd e e e, A a d e. T e e e ab e I ea e. He a eac
a a , e ab e e ab e e e : e ec c ca , - ba e e , a ce . He e e ca e e ce
ad a ed be a a c e e d. He d e, a ec , S e a a c ace a d a de ea .

G
e a A a ad ed ed e -de , e e ded de e a a be a .H a e c a ed
e. Ne a , e ead e de e e ea , a d, O c ad a e d e . A a a ed
cea e e e ce a . He ad ea ed eU ed S a e ; e ad b a ed a aa d ad .W a e
be ed?

I ee a e e a ce e a A a , a e b ea c a c e a .T e a a e ec ed e e
a e ed b ea e c e e ab e c e. O e a d, I a a a ,a de e ce a e e
a e bac . A e e c a ed A a a e e ce a e: E ce e a d
Re a O ea , e F.B.I., C a d B de P ec , e e a ead a e De , e ca ead a e

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2020/9/18 The Ma Wh Ref ed S The Ne Y ke

in Cleveland. At one point, Asgari urged me to call o cials in Detroit and Cleveland who had signed documents addressed to
him. None of them ever answered their phones.

occasionally sent representatives to meet with detainees and discuss their cases. They were just following procedures, they told
Asgari, and had no authority to evaluate the logic or the justice of the measures they enforced. Asgari answered the representatives
by telling them an Iranian joke. A man sees two groups of workers, one digging a trench along the road and the other following
Complete o r order no
and recei
behind to ll it up and cover it. The bystander, confounded, asks the workers e a free
what they tote. They say that the government
are doing.
hired three contractors: one to dig, one to install a pipeline, and the third to cover it. The second contractor never showed up, a
See op ions
worker says, adding, “So we are doing our job.” Such, Asgari concluded, was .

In January, he received a notice informing him that prisoners with a deportation order could request a custody review after ninety
days, in the hope of winning release under supervision. His ninety days were up on February 13th. He was invited to submit
documentation showing that he was neither a ight risk nor a danger to society. Asgari did so eagerly, pointing out that during the
two years he’d awaited trial he’d obeyed every court order and kept every curfew, and that in court he’d been exonerated. On
February 19th, he received a letter announcing that his request had been denied. The letter was dated February 3rd, ten days
before the deadline—and before he had even submitted his supporting documents. Nobody had looked at his le, he realized. The
reason that he was given for the refusal was even more ba ing: said that it was waiting for Iran to issue him a travel document,
even though the passport he’d surrendered to , in 2017, was valid through 2022.

The deciding o cer assigned to his case was Scott Wichrowski. Asgari met with him twice at Seneca. How, Asgari asked, was
waiting for a travel document a reason to incarcerate a person? What threat did he pose? Wichrowski, Asgari told me, just looked
at his shoes. “If I were him, I would resign—I wouldn’t just watch people suffering for nothing,” Asgari grumbled. (Wichrowski
declined interview requests.)

At the legal library in Seneca County Jail, Asgari happened on a quote from Robert Jackson, a Supreme Court Justice in the
nineteen-forties and fties: “Procedural fairness and regularity are of the indispensable essence of liberty. . . . Indeed, if put to the
choice, one might well prefer to live under Soviet substantive law applied in good faith by our common-law procedures than under
our substantive law enforced by Soviet procedural practices.” Asgari concluded that he was a victim of American law enforced by
Soviet-style procedures.

T
he coronavirus cut a brutal swath through Iran in February before wracking the United States. Flights to Iran were
suspended. At rst, Asgari was merely irritated; then he began to panic. He was at high risk of a severe -19 infection.
For six years, he’d suffered from repeated bouts of pneumonia, and he had a chronic liver condition and high blood pressure. Late
that month, he developed a lung infection, but he took antibiotics and it cleared up, so he gured that it wasn’t -19. Then, as
the pandemic worsened, began transferring him to one fetid prison after another.

His rst transfer, on March 10th, took some twelve hours. He and other detainees, in shackles and chains, could hardly move their
hands to eat, and some prisoners soiled themselves for lack of toilet access. They ew from base to base and nally landed in
Alexandria, Louisiana, where had a deportation hub. When it was time to disembark, Asgari had a pounding headache and
could hardly stand; when he reached the stairs descending from the plane, he fainted.

Asgari was told that detainees could be kept at the Alexandria Staging Facility for a maximum of one week. The place was
correspondingly stark, without books or the camaraderie of a stable cohort. Asgari’s blood pressure spiked. After seven days, he
was scheduled for deportation. He spent another sixteen hours in shackles—this time going north, to New Hampshire, then

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2020/9/18 The Ma Wh Ref ed S The Ne Y ke

, N J ,a , T a .A , a a a a a b a .I
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Complete o r order no
.H a a a a a a M a a a a and receia e a ,free
b tote. a b .T
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See op ions
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2020/9/18 The Ma Wh Ref ed S The Ne Y ke

been taken to an isolation cell, and I should then call his family. Ten minutes later, he was back on the line, against a background
roar of inmates cheering.

Asgari had led the pod in mobbing the entryway. He told the guards that he was ghting for his life and would not give in. His
cellmates backed him, and the newcomer was led away. “Now people are happy,” Asgari told me. “Not one showed weakness.”
When a new shift of guards arrived, Asgari said, they thanked him: they, too, felt safer because of what he’d done. A prison sta er
Complete o r order no
and recei
who had witnessed the scene later told Asgari that he had been thrilled when Asgarie had
a free tote.to ght for his life, and had asked
vowed
the other detainees if they would ght for theirs, too. Everyone had yelled, “Yes ” The sta er told Asgari, “I felt like I was in a
See op ions
movie.”

Asgari’s high spirits lasted only about three days. His right leg began to swell, purpled with bruises along a bone that he’d never
injured. It became agonizing to walk the hundred feet from his bed to the pod door, where medicines were disbursed, or to the
toilet. He was denied a wheelchair; a nurse o ered him ice instead. At last, he saw a doctor, who suspected a blood clot and had
him rushed to a hospital for an ultrasound. The doctor there also suspected clots, though they were too small to show on the
ultrasound, and he told that Asgari should not y. Asgari did not seem entirely sorry that plans for his deportation were again
delayed. If he stayed in the U.S. a little while longer, he told me, he might be granted habeas. “I want to show these guys they were
wrong,” he said.

Asgari was relentless in pursuit of a cause—and there was always a cause. The hospital gave him crutches, but using them hurt his
back, and within two days he’d sent them to a nurse, with a note demanding a wheelchair. Protocol forbade it, he was told. In
protest, he enlisted his cellmates to drag him to his destinations on a bedsheet. (At one point, he told me, laughing, “they dragged
me on the oor so fast, my ass was set on re.”) How else, he asked a nurse, was he to transport himself ? One day, a guard quietly
placed a wheelchair inside the pod. Asgari attributed such victories to what he called the “power of one.” He told me, “An
innocent, independent, wise individual will prevail in any situation.”

A
t Winn, Asgari had time to re ect on his experience. He had always lived, in a way, at a crossroads. He’d arrived as a
student in the University of Tehran’s department of metallurgical engineering in 1977, just as Iran’s revolutionary student
movement gathered force, and his faculty was its epicenter. When the movement toppled the Shah and established the Islamic
Republic, Asgari helped form an organization called the Jihad of Construction, an Iranian counterpart to the U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers. He coördinated crews to build roads, pipe water, and harvest wheat. The Iran-Iraq War began in 1980, and the
engineering students turned to military logistics. To move tanks onto the Al-Faw Peninsula, they helped design a pontoon bridge
that had to be installed underwater in the middle of the night and then buoyed to the surface with air tanks. Asgari took part in
ve o ensives; he saw bodies ripped apart, and once a mortar shell landed just behind him, causing the surrounding mud to boil.

Asgari had been a revolutionary not because he was a religious ideologue but because he was an egalitarian. He believed that social
justice took precedence over any theory of the state. What surprised him most, when he rst came to America, in the nineties, was
that such a calm, orderly society had risen from the cruel machinery of capitalism.

He believed that his time in detention had given him a more complete picture of American society than most citizens possessed. “I
have friends in low places,” he often told me, with a chuckle. He’d spent two years in the federal court system and ve months in
the clutches of , all because the F.B.I. had tried and failed to recruit him, and because his visa—if it really was a visa—had never
been stamped. Now, in an detention center on the Texas-Louisiana border, he was having a Tocqueville moment.

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2020/9/18 The Ma Wh Ref ed S The Ne Y ke

A ga e ed A e ca a ec . He a e ed a, e e , ec d c a ea d a a ,
a d a a c d b a e a ed fea f be g ce ed. B a ea ec a ed a e
de e de ce f e A e ca dca .

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fa .I a eged e e a e a d ed e a,f e ec e e d, e a e ad ca ed a a
Complete o r order no
a d fa e . I be e e e e a e g ba a e a d be e ec ed b aandg recei
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a e , e ea g e e ee ee f e a eg e e a a e e de f
See op ions
ca e.

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a ea ed a d ba d c a e f ec . He a agge ed b e be f de a ee , e fe , ad
b e be g ed, a d b b a ea e a ee ed a dd e be a f A e ca a . A ga a c ced
a a dde e a be d ec c a f e de g f e a e.O e e,
e c d de a d .

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da e .T e ea e e , e e ad bee ed ec e beca e e ee be de ed ad
e a e ee g . T e de e a c de ed ad a e, e, b e ee ed e a e
fac e a e ec c ed f c e.

P a ac cbe f a ea ,a df e a A ga fa e ad e e ged ge f e e e e ce.

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b c ed e. G e e g ee d ae b eae ea e,b a be g , f ced ac a d e
g e e a , e ded be c ea e, A ga ad f d. He ad a a bee a c a f c c e ,a d e
de d a ea fa ce f c a e e e a a ed ee e e e ee e a a e. T e b d
a g e ee e c e dee e ce f e g .

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d a d e e e . A ga a ed c f e b e eg, a d, be a f, ed c ef ed a e g
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d a e a d, a d aga e a ba g c a c e gc e e e be ed, a be e e e . If
d e ea e da g e , A ga a d: Le e a ef da , a d I be a e ac g TV a d ea g
Pe a f d.

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aeA , A ga d bdf a : e e e e f ced a e ace d e f e . A ga
e ed ef -19 A 25 . He a ea g d e c ed ea . W e e e, e ded ea a d
c g ed ce a . He a aced a ega e e e ce a e fec ed a a a f e de a ee . He ad
e a d ed acce a e, a d a a ge b ac de f c a . A ea ge e e e d ead . W e
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a a ead fec ed, a d e ef e ge a .

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d ed e . A ga a f ce c .B ec e e b d ed e a e e a e a d e a a

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2020/9/18 The Ma Wh Ref ed S The Ne Y ke

c c a ce . E e e a e e a a ed, e a ed a ea e eI a a e .

Ia a d e U.S. ad e c a ed a a e Dece be , a d ad ce bee d c a e . M c ae W e, a

U.S. Na eea e e ced ea Ia a e ed A K a e e, eS e e Leade , a be
a ed Ma e Tae , a a c e F da c a ed a c a ad a- eb ca e
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A a de a a ec d e dea : e d e and
a recei e a afree
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A e be Ma , a a a ea ed e U.S. e ,a d See
e aop ions
ce e ed A a a e. Ke
C cc e , e ac De Sec e a H e a d Sec ,ca ed eA c a ed P e a e U.S. ad bee
de A a ce Dece be , a d a eI a a ad de a ed c e a d a a e Feb a , e
e a de c c , a e a a a e b e.

I a e Ma , a L a ac dec ded a eA a abea e a e a ,a d a e ee e ea e

e .B be e a c d a e , ea J e, a e e e c d, e a a de ed. He ca ed e
c e, Ta e a , e a Te a , J e 4 . He a e - a ed, ee e c
dde eed ,a d e e ed b e a e d. H -a Ia a ca ad ece ed . L ca e ed a
ca ed e e , c ea ea e ee a a e be a c c A e ca ce. F , e dec ed; e d d
a ee ca e a ca .H , e ed, a ea ab e ea a ad a ed .
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a d ed a W ad d ed -19. He a a e e , e d e. I e e a a a e e be a
.

A a ad ea e Ia e a e ad e a ac a ce , be de e ab e a
ea e da e a a ea . Id e be a ed, A a ad d e e e dea a e, bac a
W . I a ed ca e a A e ca c , be e a A e ca d ea d . Beca e I e I ad d e
a . ♦

P blished in the print edition of the September 21, 2020, iss e, ith the headline The Man Who Wo ldn t Sp .

La ra Secor, an editor at Foreign A airs, is the a thor of Children of Paradise.

M : C a Ia Sc F a B a I a P E a Ia a

I a a C E c (I.C.E.) I a T a

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