Kuma Reality dev accused of spying released from Iranian prison

A developer jailed in Iran on charges of spying has been let free after four years.

32-year-old Iranian-American Amir Hekmati was originally arrested by authorities in the Middle-Eastern country over his work on a language-teaching game produced by Kuma Reality.

The 2009 release was designed for soldiers and backed by a $95,000 grant from the US Department of Defense.

While in custody, Iranian authorities reported that Hekmati admitted to creating “free special movies and games with the aim of manipulating public opinion in the Middle East” for the CIA – a claim that the US government denied and argued was the result of a forced confession.

Hekmati was initially subscribed the penalty of death in 2012, before it was reduced to a ten-year sentence after a second trial.

He was released as an effort by the US government to broker a deal for the release of four American-Iranians held by Iran, including a Washington Post reporter, an Idaho pastor and a businessman.

Thanks, Polygon.