FBI adds three Iranian officials to Most Wanted list in Levinson case

ISTANBUL

The FBI on Tuesday added three senior Iranian intelligence officials to its Most Wanted list in connection with the 2007 abduction and presumed death of retired FBI agent Robert Levinson.

Newly released posters seeking information feature Reza Amiri Moghadam, Taghi Daneshvar and Gholamhossein Mohammadnia, all senior figures in Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS), according to an FBI statement. They are accused of playing central roles in Levinson’s kidnapping from Iran’s Kish Island in 2007.

Levinson, a retired FBI special agent, disappeared while on an unauthorized CIA mission to Iran, according to media reports. The Iranian government has denied knowledge of Levinson’s whereabouts or condition for years. His prolonged detention and presumed death remain among the most high-profile unresolved cases involving a US citizen in Iran.

“These three intelligence officers were among those who allegedly facilitated Bob's 2007 abduction and the subsequent cover-up by the Iranian government,” said Steven Jensen, the FBI’s Assistant Director in Charge in Washington. “Bob likely later perished in captivity far away from his family, friends, and colleagues.”

The US Treasury Department sanctioned all three men in March for their involvement in Levinson’s abduction and the alleged cover-up, citing their key roles in what officials described as a coordinated effort to obscure Iran’s responsibility.

The sanctions target Reza Amiri Moghadam; Iranian Ambassador to Pakistan Gholamhossein Mohammadnia, who is also an MOIS deputy and former ambassador to Albania; and Taqi Daneshvar, the officer who oversaw agents during Levinson’s disappearance.