Former Tehran prosecutor Saeed Mortazavi, who was behind some of the most notorious prison deaths in Iran the last decade, was apprehended April 22 and transferred to Evin prison, where he will serve a two-year sentence for being an accessory to murder in 2009.

On April 12, a spokesman for Iran’s judiciary, Gholam Hossein Mohseni-Ejei, when asked about Mortazavi’s longstanding case, said, “His verdict has been issued, but unfortunately we haven’t been able to find him.” Mohseni-Ejei’s comments instantly went viral, with Iranians mockingly posting “Wanted” pictures of Mortazavi on social media. Iranian social media users also posted pictures of “Wanted” posters that had been put up on Iranian streets. That a former high government official, one who was often still seen in attendance at official gatherings or Friday prayers, could not be found was laughable to most Iranians. He was apprehended over the weekend in a village in northern Iran.

Mortazavi was once referred to as the “Butcher of Tehran” for his role in shuttering Reformist newspapers during his time as Tehran's prosecutor. He had come to symbolize the immunity that the judiciary and hard-line officials operate with in Iran. A parliamentary panel held Mortazavi directly responsible for three deaths in Kahrizak prison following the 2009 protests of the presidential election. He has also been linked to the 2003 death of Canadian-Iranian photographer Zahra Kazemi and to financial improprieties at Iran’s Social Security Organization. Mortazavi has held so many different important positions within the government — he began his career as a prosecutor while only in his 20s — that Shargh Daily asked, “Which Mortazavi was sent to prison?”

Mortazavi’s conviction was specifically for the death of Mohsen Rouholamini, the son of an adviser to conservative presidential candidate Mohsen Rezaei’s campaign. Under the orders of Mortazavi, Rouholamini was rounded up in the 2009 protests and transferred to Kahrizak detention center, where, along with other detainees, he was abused and eventually died of his wounds.