On September 2nd, the doorbell rings at the family's home in Malmö. Arvin Khoshnood is not expecting a visitor.
Even before that, I had a conversation with the Security Service where they asked me to be careful, so it was in the back of my mind, he says.
Two boys, who were 16 and 17 years old at the time, are now charged with attempted murder. Three boys of about the same age are charged with aiding and abetting.
The same boys are also charged with involvement in a shooting in Uddevalla on September 10, when a person was shot in the back of the head but survived. Ali Shehab, a leader in the criminal network Foxtrot, is in custody on suspicion of ordering the shooting, reports TV4 Nyheterna.
Säpo has previously confirmed that criminal networks in Sweden are acting on behalf of Iran.
Prosecutor: Not clarified
Arvin Khoshnood, who was born in Iran and fled with his parents in the 1980s, says he has been one of the few who contributes a critical analysis of Iran - and believes that he is therefore a voice that the regime wants to silence.
"I have spent many years of my life examining and studying the regime in Iran. Their domestic and foreign policies, but mainly their intelligence activities, security organizations and operations abroad," he says.
Prosecutor Per-Erik Rinsell confirms that this is a so-called "crime as a service" case, where young perpetrators undertake assignments from people connected to organized crime. But who ordered the attempted murder is unclear.
"It is not yet clear who commissioned the work, but the investigation is ongoing," he says in a press release.
Lives hidden
Arvin Khoshnood and his family left their house the same night the attempted murder took place, and have since been living in secret.
"It has a huge impact. Home is a place where you should feel safe, but we have lost that. We have had to leave our friends, our family and everything we have built up over many years," he says.
At the same time, Khoshnood adds, he is happy to be alive.
Not all Iranians have been able to survive the regime's terrorist operations over the years. I have Sweden to help me and protect me; not everyone has been that lucky.
