PHOTOS: Inside the California home of Qasem Soleimani's relatives after ICE arrest
Photos obtained by Fox News Digital offer a rare glimpse into the high-end lifestyle of the niece and grandniece of the late Iranian terror mastermind Qasem Soleimani.
Hamideh Soleimani Afshar, 47, identified as Soleimani's niece, and her daughter, Sarinasadat Hosseiny, 25, were taken into custody last week by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), after the State Department revoked their green cards, according to an announcement over the weekend from the State Department.
Afshar, according to Secretary of State Marco Rubio, has been an outspoken supporter of the Iranian regime, celebrated attacks on Americans and referred to the United States as the "Great Satan." Afshar and Hosseiny are just a few relatives of Iranian regime clerics and IRGC commanders embedding themselves in the Western societies their relatives regularly denounce and fight against.
"These women are posting in bikinis, on yachts, they are wearing v-neck dresses down to their bellybuttons, they are wannabee Instagram influencers. All on the blood money – money that was embezzled, stolen from the Iranian people. And there's thousands of them, not just two, there's thousands in the U.S. and in Canada and in London," Sheila Nazarian, who fled Iran as a child, told Fox News' Dana Perino.
"And, they are such hypocrites. You can show a few strands of hair in Iran, get 74 lashes – I've seen women kicked to the ground, kicked in their head while on the ground for violating the hijab policy in Iran," she continued. "Women have been raped, women have been killed for showing their hair. Much less, these women showing – like if you look at their Instagram it's infuriating – they're on yachts, they're on helicopters, they're shopping on Rodeo Drive half-naked and it's almost like rules for thee but not for me on full display."
Photos taken shortly after federal officials intercepted Afshar and her daughter at their home several miles outside of downtown Los Angeles, provide a glimpse into the pair's life and the home they were residing in and renting out to tenants. Images of the roughly half-a-million dollar property, which, according to the New York Post, was bought by Afshar in 2021, show the small Accessory Dwelling Unit, or ADU, Afshar resided in, the main property it was attached to, and a Model 3 Tesla she reportedly drove.
Afshar lived in a small ADU behind that main property, while her daughter handled leasing obligations virtually for her mother, who reportedly does not speak English well enough to do so herself. Photos of the main property showed furniture laid out in the front lawn.
Inside the ADU, a selfie ring-light, a flat-screen television mount, a box for a flat-screen television, and a life-sized female mannequin can be seen. On the outside, the ADU looks modest and rather unexciting, but the main property can be seen with furniture and other items strewn across the front of the property.
In addition to photos of the exterior of the main residence and its ADU, photos were also captured at the property of a Model 3 Tesla stuffed with luxury brand-name goods, which reportedly belonged to Afshar, or her daughter. Prior to Afshar deleting her Instagram page, she could reportedly be seen posing in designer outfits, next to a helicopter, in scantily clad swimwear showing off stomach tattoos and lounging on a jet-ski, and more.
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Inside the Tesla, photos showed a Miss Dior bag on one of the seats, designer cushions, a Sephora makeup bag, and other bags stuffed with things. Papers, including what appeared to be parking tickets, as well as something with Arabic writing on it, were also pictured inside the vehicle.
The move to arrest Afshar and Hosseiny is just one of the latest targeting Iranian-regime counterparts and their families for living comfortable lives within the United States. Earlier this month, the State Department also terminated the legal status of Fatemeh Ardeshir-Larijani, the daughter of a former senior Iranian official, and her husband. Both are no longer in the U.S. and are barred from reentry.
Meanwhile, Eissa Hashemi, the son of a former Iranian-regime spokesperson dubbed "Screaming Mary" by the American media when she led the communications drive for a group of Iranian militants in 1979 when they stormed the U.S. Embassy in Tehran and held dozens of Americans hostage for over a year, is also facing calls to be investigated and deported, according to online petitions. His life in Los Angeles was described by the New York Post as "affluent."
Acting Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis told Fox News Digital that both Afshar and her daughter entered the U.S. in 2015. Afshar entered on a tourist visa in June, while her daughter, Hosseiny, entered in July on a student visa. Both were granted asylum status by a judge in 2019.
Bis added that Afshar became a green card holder under the Biden administration in 2021, giving her permanent lawful status. Two years later, in 2023, Hosseiny also got her green card, gaining permanent lawful status.
According to Bis, Soleimani Afshar even filed a naturalization application last July. On her application, she disclosed that she had traveled to Iran at least four times since being issued a green card. Bis said these trips to Iran "illustrate her asylum claims were fraudulent."