The US Justice Department said a Pakistani with ties to Iran has been charged in the US in connection with a foiled plot to assassinate former President and Republican re-election candidate Donald Trump.
Pakistani Asif Merchant was charged on Tuesday with conspiracy to commit political assassination in USA – the US Department of Justice reported. CNN reported that the victim of the attack was supposed to be the former president Donald Trump.
Brooklyn prosecutors announced charges against Merchant, 46, accusing him of traveling to New York to hire a hitman to carry out the attacks, AP reported.
“The plot was interrupted before it could be carried out,” the agency reported, adding that “court documents do not identify any potential targets.”
CNN reported, however, citing the indictment and a U.S. official's statement, that the foiled plot was aimed at Donald Trump, the Republican candidate in the fall presidential election. The television station said FBI investigators believe current and former U.S. government officials were also targeted.
According to Reuters, Merchant sought revenge for the US killing of Iranian intelligence chief General Qassem Soleimani in 2020. CNN reported that the Pakistani has ties to the government. Iran. The AP reported that the man spent many years in Iran, where he has family.
Donald TrumpPAP/EPA/MICHAEL REYNOLDS
Plot to Assassinate Trump
Merchant arrived in New York in April and contacted someone he believed would help him order a political assassination. That person contacted the FBI and began working for investigators.
It was revealed that the Pakistani was looking for people who would steal documents or memory drives from the house of one of the victims, plan protests at political rallies and carry out political assassinations.
The man met in New York with alleged hitmen who he believed were going to commit the murders but were actually undercover law enforcement officers. He allegedly arranged for a $5,000 retainer for the killings, which were to take place in late August or early September.
According to court records seen by Reuters, a federal judge ordered his detention on July 16, when he was reportedly preparing to leave the U.S. He is currently in federal custody.
On July 13, Donald Trump was the target of an assassination attempt by 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, who shot him from 450 feet away during a campaign rally in Pennsylvania. Two people were killed, including the gunman, and two others were seriously injured. According to CNN, investigators have determined that the failed Pennsylvania attack was not related to Merchant.
Main image source: PAP/EPA/MICHAEL REYNOLDS