The Department of Justice released an indictment this week, charging a Pakistani citizen with alleged ties to the Iranian government with one count of murder for hire as part of a plot to assassinate former President Donald Trump and other current and former government officials.
In August or September, federal officials in Brooklyn, New York, say that Asif Merchant, 46, went to New York City and worked with a hitman to carry out the killings. Officials report that they caught Merchant on July 12, just as he was preparing to leave the United States. This was not long after he met what he thought were hitmen who would carry out the killings, but they were actually undercover police officers. His whereabouts are unknown.
The FBI looked into Merchant’s claimed plan to hire people to kill people for money for about 20 weeks before Trump and three other people were shot and killed in Butler, Pennsylvania. But federal agents say they haven’t found any proof that Merchant was involved in that failed attack. The FBI and DOJ think they were able to stop Merchant’s plans from actually happening. They also say that the merchant is helping the FBI with its investigations. But they are also thinking about known threats from Iran against Trump and have told the Secret Service about them. This has made things safer for the GOP presidential candidate.
According to unnamed national security sources, Iran’s growing list of threats to kill Trump and others includes the assassination plans revealed in the released indictment. The U.S. government has said over and over that it is worried that Iran might try to kill Trump or one of his former advisors as revenge for the drone strike in 2020 that killed Gen. Qasem Soleimani, a top general in Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
US authorities have previously charged people with similar attempts to kill others. For example, in 2022, they charged a 45-year-old Iranian IRGC member who they say tried to pay someone in the US $300,000 to kill former national security director John Bolton. In that case, authorities say the plan was “likely revenge” for the death of Soleimani. On Tuesday, US Attorney General Merrick Garland said, “We will not tolerate attempts by an authoritarian government to target American public leaders and put America’s national security at risk.”
Attorneys for the DOJ say that Merchant is a Pakistani citizen, but he has been to Iran and has family there. When he got to New York in April 2024, Merchant’s goal was to hire a killer to kill Trump and other U.S. leaders. Merchant got in touch with someone he thought was a hitman who could help him with his plan. However, that person then called the FBI, agreed to remain anonymous, and assisted the Bureau with their investigation.
Author:Â Steven Sinclaire
