The Justice Department revealed on Friday that federal charges have been filed against three individuals in connection with a thwarted Iranian plot to assassinate Donald Trump prior to the presidential election. According to court documents, one of the accused, Farhad Shakeri, was approached by Iranian officials in September and instructed to surveil and carry out the assassination of Trump. Shakeri, who is currently evading authorities in Iran, was allegedly directed by Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps to focus solely on targeting Trump.
Prosecutors claim that Shakeri, who engaged in recorded conversations with law enforcement, was initially assigned by the IRGC to conduct assassinations of US and Israeli citizens within the United States. However, on October 7, he was instructed to concentrate exclusively on Trump, with a deadline of seven days to devise an assassination plan. Shakeri informed investigators that if he failed to meet the deadline, the IRGC planned to postpone the operation until after the election, anticipating Trump's defeat.
The other two individuals implicated in the case, Carlisle Rivera and Jonathon Loadholt, both American citizens, were apprehended in New York for allegedly aiding the Iranian government in surveilling a US citizen of Iranian descent. They appeared in court on Thursday and are currently in custody awaiting trial.
Attorney General Merrick Garland and FBI Director Christopher Wray condemned the ongoing threats posed by the Iranian government towards individuals in the United States. Garland emphasized the severe national security risk posed by Iran, highlighting the charges against an Iranian regime operative tasked with orchestrating criminal activities to advance Iran's assassination plots, including targeting President-elect Donald Trump.
The US government has expressed concerns about potential retaliatory actions from Iran following the 2020 US drone strike that resulted in the death of Gen. Qasem Soleimani, a prominent IRGC general. There have been apprehensions that Iran might seek retribution by targeting Trump, who authorized the strike, or his former advisors.
