On April 23, 2018, during a trip to Iran, Shargi and his wife were taken into custody by Iranian authorities and held in Evin prison.
[1][2] Emad Shargi was taken to a Tehran court on November 30, 2020, where he was informed that he had been convicted of espionage without a trial and sentenced to 10 years in prison.
Iran does not recognize dual citizenship, depriving prisoners like Shargi of consular assistance and diplomatic access.
[6][7] A U.S. official said the Biden administration is treating the issue of the detainees independently from the Iran nuclear deal negotiations and is trying to resolve it as soon as possible.
Emad was ultimately freed from imprisonment in Iran on September 18, 2023, as part of an Iran–United States prisoner release mediated by Qatar.