An Iranian scientist claiming he was snatched by the CIA may have been imprisoned and tortured since returning to Iran to a hero's welcome, the opposition says.
One opposition Web site says Shahram Amiri has been imprisoned and tortured since July on suspicion of giving away state secrets, The Guardian reported.
Iranbriefing.net, operated by a U.S.-based group that reports on political prisoners and activities of Iran's revolutionary guard, said Amiri, was interrogated for three months in Tehran before spending two months in solitary confinement, then hospitalized for a week.
Officials in Tehran did not comment directly on the Web site's information, the British publication said.
"I haven't heard anything about this (Amiri's arrest) and I don't have any information regarding this matter," a spokesman for Iran's judiciary said.
Amiri has not been seen in public in the six months since his homecoming from the United States where he claimed he was held against his will. U.S. officials said the scientist went to America willingly; however, intelligence officials said they were concerned his original defection in Saudi Arabia in 2009 may have been a trap.
Western officials say the scientist's disappearance from public view bolsters their belief he was forced to return to Iran by threats to his relatives.