Three Men Deny Iran Surveillance Charges as London Trial Opens
Prosecutors say surveillance of journalists was preparation for serious violence. The defendants have pleaded not guilty at Woolwich Crown Court.
Three Iranian men have gone on trial at Woolwich Crown Court in London accused of surveillance intended to assist Iranian intelligence and prepare violence against people in Britain. All three deny the charges. The trial opened on Tuesday, 6 October, with prosecutors setting out allegations involving journalists at Iran International.
The defendants are Mostafa Sepahvand, 41, Farhad Javadi Manesh, 46, and Shapoor Qalehali Khani Noori, 57. Sky News reported the opening case, while the Crown Prosecution Service's charging statement sets out the alleged conduct and the different offences faced by the men.
What prosecutors say happened
Prosecutor Bill Emlyn Jones told jurors that the defendants researched and watched at least two journalists working for the Persian language broadcaster. The alleged preparation included visits to addresses associated with the men, photography, video recording and online research.
The prosecution said Sepahvand was intended to carry out an attack, with the other two providing assistance through surveillance. Court reporting also described messages in which he allegedly discussed £150,000 in payment connected with locating and attacking a journalist. These are allegations presented by the prosecution, not findings reached by the jury.
Iran International reports on Iran for audiences inside the country and abroad. The case concerns the alleged targeting of people working in Britain, bringing the claimed activity of a foreign intelligence service within a British criminal proceeding.
The charges distinguish different roles
All three face a charge under section 3 of the National Security Act 2023 concerning conduct likely materially to assist a foreign intelligence service. The alleged period runs from 14 August 2024 to 16 February 2025, according to the CPS.
Sepahvand additionally faces a section 18 allegation of surveillance, reconnaissance and research with the intention that he himself commit serious violence against a person in the United Kingdom. The corresponding allegations against Javadi Manesh and Noori concern preparation intended to enable violence by others.
The charges therefore distinguish alleged intelligence assistance from the claimed preparation for violence, and distinguish the role attributed to Sepahvand from those attributed to his other defendants. All remain matters for the court to determine.
How the defence positions were described
In the opening coverage, the prosecutor outlined what he said the defendants' cases would be. Sepahvand was expected to argue that fear of the consequences of refusal drove his actions and that he deliberately performed poorly. The other two were expected to say they did not know their activity assisted Iranian intelligence.
That account came through the prosecution's description of the anticipated defence. It should not be read as sworn testimony from the defendants or as a separate defence opening already delivered to the jury.
The CPS announced the charges in May 2025. The new development is the October 2026 trial and the presentation of the prosecution's case, rather than a new arrest or conviction. The proceedings were continuing at the reporting cutoff, with the defendants' not guilty pleas setting the issues the prosecution must prove.
