The Justice Department has thwarted an Iranian plot to assassinate President-elect Donald Trump before the election. A criminal complaint filed in New York reveals an official from Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps tasked Farhad Shakeri, 51, with surveilling and ultimately killing Trump.
"There are few actors in the world that pose as grave a threat to the national security of the United States as does Iran," said Attorney General Merrick Garland. He emphasized that the department charged an Iranian asset directing a network for assassination plots against targets like Trump.
Garland added that they also charged two individuals recruited to silence an American journalist critical of Iran. "We will not stand for the Iranian regime’s attempts to endanger the American people and America’s national security."
Shakeri, still at large and believed to be in Iran, immigrated to the U.S. as a child. He was deported in 2008 after serving 14 years for robbery. According to the complaint, he was given a plan to kill Trump on October 7, 2024.
In court documents, Trump was referred to as "Victim-4." Shakeri was directed to provide a plan within seven days. If he failed, the IRGC would pause the plot, thinking Trump might lose the election.
Shakeri was also tasked with surveilling two Jewish American citizens in New York City. He reportedly received a $500,000 offer for the murder of one of them and was directed to target Israeli tourists in Sri Lanka.
Federal prosecutors charged Carlisle Rivera, 49, and Jonathon Loadholt, 36, for their roles in the plot against a U.S. citizen of Iranian origin. A law enforcement source identified this target as Masih Alinejad.
At Shakeri’s direction, Loadholt and Rivera surveilled Alinejad, who has faced prior plots for kidnapping and murder. In exchange for $100,000, they sought to locate Alinejad for murder. They communicated about their plans and shared photographs related to their scheme.
In February 2024, Rivera and Loadholt discussed payments from Shakeri while surveilling Alinejad at Fairfield University. Shakeri advised them to be patient and to avoid direct confrontation. "Don’t think about going in. In is a suicide move," he warned.
All three suspects face serious charges, including murder-for-hire and conspiracy, which could lead to 10 to 20 years in prison. Shakeri faces additional charges for providing material support to a foreign terrorist organization, with potential penalties of 20 years.