According to recent reports, a Pakistani man, Asif Raza Merchant, was arrested last month in connection to an Iranian plot to assassinate former President Donald Trump and other U.S. officials. The 46-year-old was reportedly allowed into the country despite being on a terrorist watchlist. A press release from the Department of Justice noted that Merchant has been charged in the plot to murder a politician or U.S. government official on U.S. soil.
Allegedly, Merchant was permitted by the FBI to enter the United States in April on a special permission known as a “significant public benefit parole,” despite his status on the watchlist as a potential terror threat as well as spending time in Iran. “Subject was polite and cooperative throughout encounter,” per an FBI memo. “… Subject’s notable travel outside of country of citizenship includes a recent trip to Iran.”
Immediately upon being released into the American interior, Merchant reportedly contacted an accomplice who would help him carry out the assassination plan. However, the Merchant reached out to law enforcement and became a confident source (CS) in helping to thwart the plans. According to the CS, the Pakistani national was tasked with activities such as recruiting hitmen, planning protests, assassinating political figures.
Merchant was eventually arrested on July 12, just one day before the failed assassination attempt against Trump at his Butler, Pennsylvania rally. “Notably, when the FBI arrived at his residence to execute the arrest as well as a search warrant for the residence, Merchant refused to exit his residence for approximately 20 minutes after the FBI announced their presence and the search warrant,” according to court documents. “During the search, law enforcement agents searched Merchant’s wallet and found the handwritten note inside with the code words that Merchant invented to communicate with the CS about the assassination plot,” the documents continued.
A press release from the DOJ acknowledged efforts to counter Iranian efforts to kill U.S. politicians. “For years, the Justice Department has been working aggressively to counter Iran’s brazen and unrelenting efforts to retaliate against American public officials for the killing of Iranian General Soleimani,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland.
Garland continued outlining the efforts the DOJ will take, stating, “The Justice Department will spare no resource to disrupt and hold accountable those who would seek to carry out Iran’s lethal plotting against American citizens and will not tolerate attempts by an authoritarian regime to target American public officials and endanger America’s national security.”
FBI Director Christopher Wray addressed Merchant’s plot, saying, “This dangerous murder-for-hire plot exposed in today’s complaint allegedly was orchestrated by a Pakistani national with close ties to Iran and is straight out of the Iranian playbook. A foreign-directed plot to kill a public official, or any U.S. citizen, is a threat to our national security and will be met with the full might and resources of the FBI.”
Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen of the Justice Department’s National Security Division opined, “The complaint unsealed today underscores, yet again, that those who engage in lethal plotting on U.S. soil will face the full force of the American justice system. The targeting of former and current officials by foreign actors is an affront to our sovereignty and our democratic institutions and the Department of Justice will use every possible tool to expose and disrupt this egregious activity.”
Watch House Speaker Johnson destroy Kamala Harris on the border crisis below:
"*" indicates required fields