US EditionPakistani Man Is on Trial over Trump Assassination Plot with Ties to Iran, US Prosecutors Say
Prosecutors say Merchant paid $5,000 to undercover FBI agents and planned attacks on U.S. officials, including President Trump, during the 2024 election period.
- In Brooklyn on Wednesday, prosecutors say Pakistani national Asif Merchant had ties to the Iranian government and traveled to New York to recruit for potential attacks on President Donald Trump.
- After arriving in New York, Merchant met a man who became a confidential informant, and prosecutors say the killings were planned for the run-up to the 2024 presidential election.
- Court filings show operational details including Merchant paying a $5,000 advance to two would-be assassins who were undercover FBI agents and sketching plans on a hotel napkin, prosecutors say.
- Defense lawyers told jurors Wednesday there is not enough evidence to show Asif Merchant, 47, was involved in a plot, and he maintains his innocence while facing a possible life sentence.
- While the FBI's sting record shows foiled attacks through undercover agents, critics say it risks entrapping vulnerable individuals; prosecutors describe Merchant as deeply religious with families in Iran and Pakistan.
32 Articles
32 Articles
Video shows suspect in plot to kill Trump lay out scheme on a napkin
Would-be Trump assassin Asif Merchant was caught on video as he spread a napkin out on a hotel room table, put down a creamsicle-colored vape, and said, “This is the target. How will it die?” Merchant, who’s accused of trying to mastermind a political assassination at a 2024 U.S. campaign rally, thought he was speaking with a comrade-in-arms, a fellow Pakistani man who knew how to find high-end hired killers, according to the feds. Instead, that…
Rutland Herald
The Daily StarA Pakistani man is on trial over a plot to kill a US politician, possibly Trump
A Pakistani man is on trial this week on charges of trying to orchestrate the killing of a U.S. politician — potentially President Donald Trump as he campaigned in 2024. Asif Merchant has pleaded not guilty to attempted terrorism and…
Pakistani man on trial in US over Iran-linked plot to assassinate Trump
Asif Merchant, 47, appeared before a federal jury in Brooklyn this week facing charges that could bring a life sentence if he is convicted. Prosecutors allege he travelled to New York in 2024 to organise killings on American soil during the presidential election.
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