Three people were charged with plotting to kill him in Iran
The Justice Department on Friday revealed an Iranian murder-for-hire plot to kill people Donald Trump. They charged a man who said a government official tasked him with planning the assassination of the president-elect. The plot is said to have taken place before Trump’s election win over VP Kamala Harris on November 6.
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What do investigators know about the alleged plot against Donald
Investigators learned of the plan to kill Trump from Farhad Shakeri. He is believed to be an asset of the Iranian government who served time in prison in the US for robbery. Authorities said he had a network of criminal associates that Tehran used to surveil and plot murders for hire.
Shakeri told investigators that a contact in Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard guided him last September. devise a plan within seven days to surveil and ultimately kill Trump, Reported by AP News. Stores are quoted a criminal complaint was unsealed in federal court in Manhattan.
The official allegedly told Shakeri, “We spent a lot of money” and that “Money is not the problem.” Shakeri told investigators that the official told him that if he could not come up with a plan within the seven-day time frame then the plot would be halted until after the election. The official is said to have assumed that Trump would lose and that it would then be easier to kill him.
More information about Farhad Shakeri
Shakeri is an Afghan citizen who immigrated to the US as a child. He was later deported after serving 14 years in prison for robbery. He also told investigators that his Revolutionary Guard liaison tasked him with plotting to kill two Jewish Americans living in New York and Israeli tourists in Sri Lanka.
The criminal complaint said Shakeri revealed some details about the alleged plots in a series of recorded telephone interviews with FBI agents while in Iran. He said he cooperated with investigators to try to reduce the prison sentence of an associate serving time in prison in the US.
According to the complaint, officials determined that some of the information he provided was false. However, his statements regarding the plot to kill Donald Trump and Iran’s willingness to pay large sums of money were determined to be accurate.
Donald Trump’s team reacts to the debunked conspiracy
The plot reflects what federal officials describe as Iran’s ongoing efforts to target American government officials, including Trump, on American soil. Last summer, the Justice Department charged a Pakistani man with ties to Iran in a murder-for-hire plot against American officials. Iranian agents also conducted a hacking operation and leaked emails of Trump campaign associates that officials assessed as an attempt to interfere in the presidential election.
Intelligence officials said Iran opposes Mr. Trump’s re-election because he believes he is likely to increase tensions between Washington and Tehran. The Trump administration ended the nuclear deal with Iran, reimposed sanctions, and ordered the killing of Iranian general Qassem Soleimani. That action prompted Iran’s leaders to vow revenge.
Trump spokesman Steven Cheung said the president-elect knew about the assassination plot and nothing would stop him from “returning to the White House and restoring peace around the world.”
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What happens next?
Shakeri is currently in hiding and remains in Iran. Two other men were arrested on charges that Shakeri recruited them to track down and kill prominent Masih Alinejad. The Iranian-American journalist has endured multiple murder-for-hire plots by Iranians that were foiled by law enforcement.
“I was shocked,” Alinejad told The Associated Press by phone from Berlin. “This is the third time against me and it’s shocking.”
In a post on social media platform X, she said: “I came to America to exercise my First Amendment right to free speech — I don’t want to die. I want to fight against tyranny and I deserve to be safe. Thank you to law enforcement for protecting me, but I call on the United States government to protect America’s national security.”
Attorneys for two other defendants, identified as Jonathan Loadholt and Carlisle Rivera, did not immediately respond to messages seeking comment. Iran’s United Nations delegation declined to comment.
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Associated Press reporters Eric Tucker and Larry Neumeister contributed to this report.
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