US charges three people involved in Iranian plot to assassinate Donald Trump

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) on Friday revealed a thwarted Iranian plot to assassinate President-elect Donald Trump in the weeks leading up to the elections.

The DOJ announced it has brought charges against three people allegedly involved in the conspiracy that was ordered by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in revenge for the killing of IRGC General Qassem Soleimani in January 2020. 

DOJ prosecutors said an Afghan national, Farhad Shakeri (51), was tasked with the mission of providing a plan to kill Trump within seven days. Described in the indictment as an "IRGC asset residing in Tehran," Shakeri held voluntary phone conversations with U.S. law enforcement.

According to the Washington Post, he told an FBI agent he could not put together an assassination plan that would meet the Iranian government’s timeframe, resulting in the IRGC officials' decision to pause it. 

In addition, Shakeri told investigators he was tasked with surveilling two Jewish American citizens residing in New York City. He was offered $500,000 by an Iranian official for the murder of either. Another mission he received was to target Israeli tourists in Sri Lanka. 

The DOJ said Shakeri immigrated to the United States as a child and was deported around 2008 after being imprisoned on robbery charges. While serving jail time, he met the two other people allegedly involved in the plot, Carlisle Rivera (49) and Jonathon Loadholt (36) – both American citizens and residents of New York who were also named in the indictment. 

They were accused of helping the Iranian government surveil a U.S. citizen of Iranian origin. Prosecutors did not name that person but provided a description of an outspoken critic of the Tehran regime, who had previously been targeted for murder. 

Later in the day, Iranian-American journalist and human rights activist Masih Alinejad wrote on 𝕏: “I am shocked. I just learned from the @FBI that two men were arrested yesterday in a new plot to kill me at Fairfield University, where I was scheduled to give a talk.”

“I also learned that the person assigned to assassinate @realDonaldTrump was also assigned to kill me on U.S. soil. The alleged killers also went in front of my house in Brooklyn,” she added. “I call on the U.S. government and the future President of the United States to be tough on terror. The Islamic Republic understands only one language: the language of pressure.”

FBI Director Christopher Wray said in a statement, "The charges announced today expose Iran’s continued brazen attempts to target U.S. citizens." He added, "This includes President-elect Donald Trump, other government leaders, and dissidents who criticize the regime in Tehran."