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BROOKLYN, N.Y. (BFMG) — A federal jury in Brooklyn on Friday convicted a Pakistani man accused of working for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in a foiled plot to assassinate a U.S. politician or government official on American soil.
Asif Merchant, also known as Asif Raza Merchant, 48, was found guilty of murder for hire and attempting to commit an act of terrorism transcending national boundaries. Prosecutors said Merchant traveled to New York City in 2024 intending to recruit hitmen to carry out the killing, but the plan was intercepted by U.S. law enforcement before it could proceed.
According to trial testimony, Merchant admitted he was sent to the United States by the IRGC — Iran’s global paramilitary force — to arrange political assassinations in retaliation for the 2020 U.S. killing of Qasem Soleimani. Merchant, a dual resident of Karachi, Pakistan, and Tehran, Iran, arrived in the United States in April 2024, met with supposed hitmen in June, and was arrested in July while attempting to fly out of the country. The “hitmen” turned out to be undercover FBI officers.
Prosecutors said Merchant sought to hire the assassins to kill high-profile political figures, including former President Donald Trump, President Joe Biden, and former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley. He paid $5,000 in cash to the undercover agents during a meeting in Manhattan and promised further instructions from Iran after leaving the U.S.
“This man landed on American soil hoping to kill President Trump — instead, he was met with the might of American law enforcement,” U.S. Attorney General Pamela Bondi said after the verdict. “The Department of Justice will remain ever-vigilant to protect Americans, prosecute terrorists, and halt acts of terrorism before they happen.”
“Iran’s terrorist regime sent Asif Merchant here to sow mayhem and murder,” said U.S. Attorney Joseph Nocella Jr. of the Eastern District of New York. “Thanks to the vigilance of our law enforcement partners, his scheme ended in failure. Today, with Merchant’s conviction, that failure is complete.”
FBI Assistant Director in Charge James C. Barnacle Jr. said the conviction underscores the agency’s commitment to defending against threats from the Iranian regime. “This foiled scheme, motivated by vengeance for U.S. actions against the Iranian regime, sought to strike at the heart of our democracy,” Barnacle said.
Merchant had joined the IRGC in late 2022 or early 2023, where he received intelligence and countersurveillance training. He later testified that he knew the IRGC was a designated terrorist organization but claimed he acted under pressure from Iranian operatives.
He faces up to life in prison when sentenced.
