Three arrested in Iranian plot to kill U.S. journalist

Attorney General Merrick Garland on Friday announced that authorities had arrested and charged three individuals for their alleged roles in an Iranian scheme to assassinate a prominent U.S. journalist and critic of the Islamic Republic.

Garland identified Khalid Mehdiyev, Polad Omarov, and Rafat Amirov, as the defendants.

"The indictment unsealed today alleges that individuals in Iran tasked defendant Amirov with targeting the victim in a murder-for-hire plot," Garland stated, alleging that "Amirov, who resided in Iran, is a leader of the Eastern European criminal organization."

"We allege that Amirov then directed defendant Omarov,...