FBI Stopped Plot to Kill Donald Trump With Reported Ties to Iran

The FBI foiled a Pakistani national’s plot to assassinate former President Donald Trump and more American officials last month, according to court documents unsealed on Tuesday.

Asif Merchant, 46, was arrested July 12 for targeting officials who are “hurting Pakistan and the world, [the] Muslim world.” Merchant was preparing to leave the country after he thought his hired hitmen, who were actually undercover FBI agents, were ready to carry out his orders in late August or early September.

Merchant was hoping to recruit roughly 25 people to help him with his plans, with some forming a protest to cause mayhem as a distraction and a woman to do “reconnaissance” work. He mapped out potential assassination plans on a napkin for the FBI agents and secured $5,000 for a prepayment, with plans to send more money after he left the country.

A law enforcement official told CNN that Merchant was unlikely to be involved in the assassination attempt on Trump’s life last month that reportedly ripped off a chunk of his ear at a rally in Pennsylvania. Regardless, the undercover officers encouraged the Secret Service to increase protections for the former president after learning about the murder-for-hire project.

Merchant is cooperating with the investigation, and agents believe he was in some way working with the Iranian government to carry out the attacks. Merchant has a wife and children living in Iran, and he has expressed admiration for its government.

His arrest is a part of a growing list of alleged Iranian plans to kill Trump or one of his top advisers in retaliation for a US drone strike that killed Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani in 2020, according to the court records.