A federal jury in Brooklyn convicted Asif Raza Merchant, a 48-year-old Pakistani national with ties to Iran, on Friday for his role in a plot to assassinate US President Donald Trump and other high-profile American politicians. The conviction covers charges of murder-for-hire and attempting to commit an act of terrorism transcending national boundaries. Prosecutors established that the plot was intended as retaliation for the 2020 killing of Iranian Quds Force commander Qassem Soleimani.
US Attorney General Pamela Bondi stated that Merchant arrived in the United States specifically to execute the assassination plan against Trump. Merchant, who faces a potential life sentence, was found to have coordinated with undercover officers he believed were hitmen to carry out the attack. This conviction comes amid heightened scrutiny of Iranian-backed efforts to target American leaders on US soil. (PTI)
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