NEW YORK: Asif Raza Merchant, a 46-year-old Pakistani man with links to Iran, has been charged with plotting to assassinate a US official in retaliation for the 2020 killing of Iranian Revolutionary Guards commander Qassem Soleimani, prosecutors announced on Wednesday.
Merchant allegedly sought to hire a hitman to target a US politician or government official. The Justice Department and prosecutors emphasized that this case reflects their commitment to holding accountable those involved in Iran’s schemes against Americans.
Soleimani was killed in a US drone strike in Baghdad in January 2020. US Attorney General Merrick Garland condemned the plot, asserting, “We will continue to hold accountable those who would seek to carry out Iran’s lethal plotting against Americans.”
The identity of the intended victim has not been disclosed, but there is no evidence linking Merchant to a recent assassination attempt against former President Donald Trump, according to Garland.
FBI Director Christopher Wray noted that Merchant had “close ties to Iran,” and described the plot as “straight out of the Iranian playbook.” The FBI revealed that the supposed hitmen Merchant tried to recruit were undercover agents.
The Justice Department stated that Merchant, who had been in Iran before arriving in the US from Pakistan, attempted to recruit an individual to help with the assassination plot. This person reported Merchant’s intentions to law enforcement, becoming a confidential informant.
Merchant was apprehended on July 12 while planning to leave the country. Iran’s UN mission claimed in August it had not been informed of the case, but asserted that such actions contradict the Iranian government’s stance on seeking justice for Soleimani’s death.
This incident follows a similar 2022 case in which the US charged Revolutionary Guards member Shahram Poursafi with plotting to kill former National Security Adviser John Bolton, offering $300,000 for the assassination.
