A British Columbia mathematician who was deemed a vexatious litigant by a judge for initiating numerous legal actions without merit was killed in a targeted incident by people who were known to him, homicide investigators say.
The victim, Masood Masjoody, had been embroiled for years in nearly a dozen lawsuits, making allegations both against the current regime in Tehran and members of the exiled Iranian monarchist faction.
Mehdi Ahmadzadeh Razavi, 48, of Maple Ridge, and Arezou Soltani, 45, of North Vancouver, were arrested Friday and each charged with one count of first-degree murder in connection with the death of Mr. Masjoody.
Sergeant Freda Fong with B.C.’s Integrated Homicide Investigation Team (IHIT) said Mr. Masjoody, who was reported missing Feb. 2, had continuing disputes and exchanges on social media with the accused.
“Whether or not that forms a motive of the homicide, it is still under investigation,” Sgt. Fong said at a news conference in Surrey on Saturday.
Masood Masjoody is shown in this undated handout photo.HO/The Canadian Press
Mr. Masjoody’s remains were located March 6 in Mission, B.C., with the assistance of police dogs and integrated emergency response and forensic identification services teams, IHIT said Saturday.
Since 2020, Mr. Masjoody had been involved in 11 lawsuits, often suing other members of the Iranian diaspora, including Reza Pahlavi, the son of the late Shah.
“His conduct bears many, if not all, of the hallmarks of vexatious litigation,” Justice Bruce Butler of the B.C. Court of Appeal wrote in a May, 2025, decision restricting Mr. Masjoody’s ability to seek more leaves to appeal.
On his website, Mr. Masjoody referred to Mehdi Ahmadzadeh Razavi as Mehdi Ahmadzadeh of Maple Ridge. The website alleges that Mr. Ahmadzadeh and Ms. Soltani led a local monarchist group called the Canadian Iranian Wakuppers Foundation, and that they were responsible for disrupting a Vancouver event featuring Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre.
Mr. Ahmadzadeh was among several people, including Mr. Pahlavi, who Mr. Masjoody sued for defamation and conspiracy in B.C. in September, 2024.
Mr. Masjoody obtained a default judgment against Mr. Ahmadzadeh but it was set aside last year by Justice David Crossin.
In his Jan. 14, 2025, decision, Justice Crossin noted that all the parties in the lawsuit were members of the Iranian community in the Lower Mainland who had once been friends until “a series of conflicts and disputes … fractured those relationships.”
The judge added that “to state there is bad blood resulting in cross‑allegations of various wrongdoings would be an understatement.”
It was the second lawsuit that Mr. Masjoody had filed against Mr. Pahlavi. In the first one, filed in January, 2024, the former math instructor claimed that he was the victim of a campaign of libelous attacks posted on X.
Mr. Masjoody’s website also posted a Dec. 31, 2025, affidavit by Mr. Pahlavi, who denied the lawsuits’ allegations that he was involved in the harassment of Iranian activists in B.C.
Ms. Soltani was a defendant in another defamation suit filed by Mr. Masjoody, alleging that he was targeted in retaliation for his first court case against Mr. Pahlavi.
From 2018 to 2020, Mr. Masjoody was employed as a math instructor at Simon Fraser University, where he was a former PhD student. While there, he accused administrators and staff of “enabling and supporting spies from the Islamic Republic of Iran” and sued after a colleague filed a harassment complaint against him and his teaching contract wasn’t renewed.
The courts dismissed the case. Mr. Masjoody sued a local news outlet, the Burnaby Beacon, alleging its coverage of the SFU lawsuit defamed him. That application was also dismissed.
Burnaby RCMP began investigating Mr. Masjoody’s whereabouts after receiving reports from concerned neighbours. An initial investigation determined that criminality was involved and the case was transferred to IHIT, a homicide unit with RCMP and municipal police officers.
The laying of first-degree murder charges marks a significant milestone, though much work remains “as the prosecution process begins,” Sgt. Fong said.
“We understand this case has impacted the Iranian community and has generated widespread concern and public interest,” she said.
“While the motive is still under investigation, we can say the victim and two accused were known to each other.”