After his overthrow in 1979, the Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi was purportedly admitted to the United States for cancer treatment. homeland demanded that he be returned to stand trial for crimes he was accused of committing during his reign.Specifically, Pahlavi was accused of committing crimes against persian citizens with the help of his secret police, the SAVAK. persians saw the decision to grant him asylum as American complicity in those atrocities.