The sentencing was only reported by Iran’s semi-official Tasnim news agency, which is believed to be close to Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, a hard-line force answerable only to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The Guard has been involved in nearly every case involving dual nationals or those with Western ties being detained.

“The conviction of a member of the nuclear negotiation team who has been arrested before and released on bail has been confirmed in the Tehran provincial appeal court,” the short report read. “This person has been sentenced to five years in prison.”

Philip Hannan, a spokesman for Global Affairs Canada, said Canadian officials were “aware of media reports that a dual national has been sentenced in Iran.” He declined to elaborate.

In August 2016, hard-line news outlets said authorities detained Esfahani, who reportedly worked as a member of a parallel team focusing on lifting economic sanctions against Iran as part of the nuclear deal. He was later granted bail, which is rare in Iran for those accused of having committed a serious crime.

After the 1979 Islamic Revolution, Esfahani reportedly served as a member of the Iranian team working at The Hague on disputes between Iran and the United States over pre-revolution purchases of military equipment from the US by Iran. He is a member of the Ontario Institute of Chartered Accountants in Canada. He also has served as an adviser to the head of Iran’s Central Bank.

Esfahani’s family could not be reached for comment and Iran’s mission at the UN did not return a