believe that the Iranian security police wanted someone they were suspicious of to act as a spy for them; (iv) the circumstances regarding the author's escape from prison were not considered credible; and finally (v) the Board questioned the authenticity of the judgement regarding check fraud submitted by the author. 4.6 The Aliens Appeals Board dismissed the author's appeal on 4 November 1999. The Board found no reason to question the author's identity, nor did it question that the author had been sentenced by a court in Tehran for check fraud in accordance with the submitted judgement, which the Swedish Embassy in Tehran had had examined by legal experts who concluded it was authentic. The Aliens Appeals Board does not rule out that the author had been deprived of his liberty while under suspicion for check fraud, nor that he had served a prison sentence for the said crime, or that he had been ill-treated during his imprisonment. In all other aspects, the Aliens Appeals Board questioned the credibility of the author on the same grounds as the Swedish Immigration Board and in the light of the submitted medical certificate which indicates that the author seems completely trustworthy. 4.7 The Swedish Embassy in Tehran further noted that check fraud cases are very common in the Islamic Republic of Iran and that at present there appears to be thousands of such cases pending before the courts in Tehran. The Embassy does not rule out the possibility that on the whole, the author has submitted reliable information in support of his reluctance to return to his country of origin. With regard to the author's passport, the Embassy states that the fact that a person has legal problems with the Iranian authorities does not necessarily mean that he is refused a passport, whereas he would normally not obtain an exit permit. 4.8 Finally, the State party points out that the author claims that the judgement concerning check fraud was presented to him in February or March 1996, after he had spent six months in prison. However, it appears from the judgement itself that it was given on 6 June 1996. The Aliens Appeals Board held the view that the author may have been found guilty of check fraud and served a prison sentence for that crime. Counsel's comments 5.1 Counsel notes the immigration authorities' reference to the fact that the author had not presented his travel documents and that it therefore cannot be excluded that the author had destroyed his Iranian passport and that his exit from the Islamic Republic of Iran was legal. She further notes that the authorities do not find it credible that the author was issued a passport while under suspicion by the Iranian secret police. With regard to the first matter, counsel submits that rejection by the immigration authorities with the