A Pakistani man with alleged ties to Iran, Asif Merchant, has been charged over a foiled conspiracy to carry out political assassinations on US soil, the Justice Department announced Tuesday. Merchant, 46, allegedly sought to recruit individuals in the US to retaliate for the 2020 killing of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards’ commander, Qassem Soleimani.
Merchant, who had spent time in Iran before traveling to the US from Pakistan, was charged with murder-for-hire in New York’s Brooklyn federal court. A judge ordered his detention on July 17.
Attorney General Merrick Garland stated, “For years, the Justice Department has been working aggressively to counter Iran’s brazen and unrelenting efforts to retaliate against American public officials for the killing of Iranian General Soleimani.”
FBI investigators believe the intended targets included former President Donald Trump, who authorized the drone strike on Soleimani. Merchant’s plot was thwarted when an individual he contacted in April reported his activities and became a confidential informant.
The plot included plans to steal documents and organize protests in the US, prosecutors allege. Merchant’s lawyer and Trump’s campaign have not commented.
After a failed assassination attempt on Trump in Pennsylvania last month, US officials increased his security due to threats from Iran. Iran’s UN mission dismissed the allegations as “unsubstantiated and malicious.”
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