Washington, Nov 9: The FBI has disrupted an Iranian plot to assassinate President-elect Donald Trump, according to an announcement from the Department of Justice (DOJ) on Friday. The agency has charged Farhad Shakeri, 51, an alleged asset of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), who is believed to be residing in Iran, while two American citizens, Carlisle Rivera, 49, and Jonathon Loadholt, 36, were arrested in New York on Thursday in connection to the plan.Investigations reveal that Shakeri was allegedly tasked by Iranian officials on October 7 to devise a scheme to kill Trump, who had been re-elected as the U.S. president earlier in the week. However, according to recorded interviews, Shakeri claimed he did not plan to act within the IRGC’s set timeline.
Shakeri, previously deported to Iran in 2008 after serving 14 years for robbery, stated that his assignments also included surveilling two Jewish American citizens in New York City. The Iranian regime, he noted, offered him $500,000 to assassinate either target, while also directing him to monitor Israeli tourists in Sri Lanka.
The DOJ highlighted the gravity of Iran’s plots against U.S. citizens, with Attorney General Merrick B. Garland stating, “There are few actors in the world that pose as grave a threat to the national security of the United States as does Iran.” Garland explained that Shakeri’s role included managing a network of criminal associates to further Iran’s assassination goals, including targeting President-elect Trump.
Alongside Shakeri, Rivera and Loadholt were arrested and charged for their alleged involvement in a network tasked with “silencing and killing” an American journalist critical of Iran. According to the DOJ, the two individuals conducted months of surveillance on an American citizen of Iranian origin at Shakeri’s direction. “We will not stand for the Iranian regime’s attempts to endanger the American people and America’s national security,” Garland added.
The arrests took place in the Southern District of New York, where Rivera and Loadholt were detained following their initial court appearance on Thursday, pending trial.
The DOJ’s revelation underscores Iran’s ongoing threats to U.S. security, with FBI Director Christopher Wray noting, “The IRGC — a designated foreign terrorist organization — has been conspiring with criminals and hitmen to target and gun down Americans on U.S. soil and that simply won’t be tolerated.”
U.S. Attorney Damian Williams for the Southern District of New York reinforced this, saying, “Today’s charges are another message to those who continue in their efforts – we will remain unrelenting in our pursuit of bad actors, no matter where they reside, and will stop at nothing to bring to justice those who harm our safety and security.”