### Three Charged in Alleged Iran-Linked Plot to Assassinate Donald Trump

Three individuals have been charged in connection with an alleged Iran-backed plot targeting President-elect Donald Trump, an Iranian-American activist, and two Jewish Americans residing in New York, according to a criminal complaint revealed on Friday in New York. The U.S. Department of Justice announced that Farhad Shakeri, Carlisle Rivera, and Jonathan Loadholt face charges of murder-for-hire.

Rivera and Loadholt are currently in custody, while Shakeri—described by the FBI as an "asset" of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC)—is believed to be in Tehran. The IRGC purportedly instructed Shakeri to conduct surveillance on Trump and orchestrate his assassination as retaliation for the killing of Qassem Soleimani, the leader of Iran's Quds Force, in a U.S. drone strike in January 2020.

Attorney General Merrick Garland highlighted the severe threat posed by Iran to U.S. national security, stating, "The Justice Department has charged an asset of the Iranian regime who was tasked by the regime to direct a network of criminal associates to further Iran's assassination plots against its targets, including President-elect Donald J. Trump."

According to the Justice Department, Shakeri emigrated to the United States but was deported in 2008 following a prison sentence for robbery. While imprisoned, he met Rivera and Loadholt, subsequently hiring them to focus on an Iranian-American activist based in Brooklyn.

Additionally, the IRGC allegedly gave Shakeri assignments to eliminate other U.S. and Israeli citizens within the United States, including Trump. A month before the election, Shakeri informed law enforcement of his obligation to devise a plan to assassinate Trump, although he claimed he did not intend to propose such a plan within the IRGC's specified timeframe.

The complaint also reveals Shakeri's responsibility for surveilling two Jewish Americans in New York City, for which he was reportedly offered $500,000 by an IRGC official for killing either target. Shakeri was also instructed to target Israeli tourists in Sri Lanka.

U.S. Attorney Damian Williams emphasized the ongoing threat posed by operatives directed by the Iranian government, stating, "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."