Hamid Mafi began working as a journalist in 1997 and since then has been arrested twice. He was detained for the first time in February 2009 when six Intelligence agents turned up at his home in normal clothing with an arrest warrant. After his house was searched and some of his belongings were confiscated, he was taken to the detention center at the Intelligence Bureau in the provincial capital of Qazvin, which is situated about 150 kilometers northwest of Tehran.

Mafi was charged with propaganda against the regime and for having relations with the People's Mojahedin of Iran, which is deemed to be “anti-Islamic”. He spent 10 days in solitary confinement before he was released on bail. He was tried at Branch 1 of the Revolutionary Court presided by Judge Hajjarian who sentenced him to 18 months in prison. However the appeals court cleared him of the cooperation charge and reduced the propaganda against the regime charge to a cash fine.

Mafi was arrested for the second time on February 9th 2010, while he was on the island of Qeshm. That very same night, he was charged by a judge on duty on the island and transferred to the detention center in Qazvin. He was subsequently taken to the Choobin Dar prison, situated in a village nearby. In 2013, Mafi told the National Public Radio (NPR) that he was “spared the worst physical torture during his imprisonment. But he found the psychological stress almost unbearable—bright lights and endless noise, to prevent him from sleeping; and interrogations that featured threats to his family or anyone he had called, or texted, with his cellphone.” “They try to destroy your marriage,” he told the interviewer. “They say what kind of relationship you have—you have a sexual relationship with this person. They really try to destroy your personal life and try to break your self-respect. This is their method.”

His second detention was a month long before he was released on bail. He was tried at Branch 2 of the Qazvin Revolutionary Court presided by Judge Zamani who sentenced him to five years in prison for propaganda against the regime, activities against national security and for having relations with the Peoples' Mojahedin Organization. Feeling that he could no longer remain in Iran, Mafi crossed the Iranian border into Turkey. He now lives in Germany and is working as a journalist.