Pakistani National with Iranian Ties Charged with Assassination Plot, Potentially Targeting Trump

Federal law enforcement has charged Asif Merchant with allegedly plotting to assassinate high-ranking U.S. officials, potentially including Former President Donald Trump. 

The Plot: Merchant, 46, arrived in New York City in April with the intention of hiring a hitman to kill Donald Trump and other current and former U.S. officials on both sides, according to prosecutors. He contacted someone he believed would help him, but the person instead contacted the FBI. When Merchant tried to hire the assassins, who were undercover FBI agents, he reportedly told them that he wanted them to kill a “political person in late August or early September” and that the work was not a one-time opportunity. Prosecutors say Merchant was also seeking a woman to do “reconnaissance” and around 25 people “who could perform a protest as a distraction after the murder occurred.”

The Details: Merchant was arrested on July 12 while preparing to leave the United States. He has no known connection to the Trump assassination attempt in Butler, PA, last month. 

Key Quotes: According to court documents, Merchant said that the “people who will be targeted are the ones who are hurting Pakistan and the world, [the] Muslim world... These are not just normal people.”