Son of powerful Iranian politician found dead in Dubai

2011-11-13 21:56:29 GMT+7 (ICT)

DUBAI (BNO NEWS) -- The son of a powerful Iranian politician was found dead in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) city of Dubai on Saturday evening, officials said on Sunday. There are conflicting reports about the nature of his death.

A brief statement on the official website of Mohsen Rezaee said his son Ahmad was found dead in the four-star Gloria Hotel in Dubai at around 8 p.m. local time on Saturday. Mohsen Rezaee ran as a conservative presidential candidate in the disputed elections in 2009, but finished third behind incumbent president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

Mohsen Rezaee's website and Iranian news agencies said Ahmad's death was being treated as suspicious, but a Dubai police official denied this. "There is no criminal suspicion, but it appears to be a suicide," Brigadier Khalil Al Mansouri, Head of the Dubai Police Criminal Investigation Department, told The National newspaper.

Mohsen Rezaee is currently the Secretary of Iran's powerful Expediency Discernment Council, which serves an advisory role to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. In October 2005, the Supreme Leader gave the Council 'supervisory' powers over all branches of the government.

Mohsen Rezaee is also known as the former Chief Commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). His son Ahmad defected to the United States in 1998 and openly accused the Iranian government of supporting terrorism, but he later retracted his statements when he returned to Iran.

-- © BNO News All rights reserved 2011-11-13

Racial slur removed.