“After an investigation into the violations by the Iranian employee of the Iranian embassy in Brazil, it was found his behavior was contrary to administrative regulations and Islamic conduct…. Thus he has been dismissed,” the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
It took five weeks for the regime to make that decision.
Brazilian media identified the diplomat as Hekmatollah Ghorbani, 51, the counselor or Number Three official in the embassy.
The Brazilian media reported he groped at least four Brazilian girls and boys aged between nine and 15 in a Brasilia pool April 14, making them cry and attracting the fury of their parents.
He was arrested but quickly released when Brazilian police managed to verify his diplomatic immunity.
Iran’s embassy in Brasilia had initially defended the diplomat—and infuriated many Brazilians—by issuing a statement claiming the groping allegations were the result of a “cultural misunderstanding.”
But Foreign Ministry spokesman Ramin Mehman-Parast subsequently said the diplomat had been recalled and would be “dealt with,” even though he also asserted that the incident was being twisted by Western and Arab media.
In Iran, men and women of any age are barred from sharing swimming pools. Iranian officials abroad are expected to follow Islamic rules and not do in Rome as the Romans do.