Pakistani man with ties to Iran charged in foiled assassination plot potentially targeting Trump, DOJ says

A Pakistani man with ties to the Iranian government sought to carry out a political assassination in the United States, a case that was investigated weeks before a gunman tried to kill former President Trump at a Pennsylvania campaign rally. 

Asif Merchant, 46, traveled to New York City and worked with a hit man to carry out the assassinations in late August or early September, federal prosecutors said in a court complaint. The complaint says the plot was intended to target high-ranking U.S. officials, potentially including Trump.

"Working on behalf of others overseas, Merchant planned the murder of U.S. government officials on American soil," said U.S. Attorney Breon Peace for the Eastern District of New York. "This prosecution demonstrates that this Office and the entire U.S. Department of Justice will take swift and decisive action to protect our nation’s security, our government officials and our citizens from foreign threats."