Tehran's ambassador to Ireland has been arrested in Iran on charges of financial mismanagement, according to Iranian judicial and foreign ministry sources.
Judiciary Minister Jamal Karimirad told reporters on Monday an Iranian envoy had been arrested and was in jail after failing to meet bail.
Foreign Ministry sources today named the man as Hamid Reza Nikkar, ambassador to Ireland. There was no indication of how Nikkar pleaded.
'One of our ambassadors has been arrested for financial mismanagement,' Karimirad said on Monday. '10% of a €16million deal has been mismanaged,' he added.
It was unclear whether the charge, which one source said involved a construction project, related to a crime committed in Iran or abroad.
Nikkar took up his posting in Dublin in June and foreign ministry sources said the charges were likely to relate to an alleged offence before his arrival in Ireland.
Press reports at the time of Nikkar's appointment said he had served as ambassador to Armenia and mayor of the central city of Isfahan before taking up his Dublin post.
The Irish ambassador in Tehran declined to comment on the case.
