Pakistani man found guilty in Iran-backed plot to kill US politicians

A Pakistani man with ties to Iran has been found guilty of plotting to assassinate US politicians and officials.

Asif Merchant, 47, hired a hitman in New York to kill prominent American officials and targeted US President Donald Trump in 2024.

After a week-long trial in Brooklyn amid the US-Israel war with Iran, a federal jury convicted him of murder for hire and attempted terrorism transcending national boundaries.

A lawyer for Merchant, who could face life in prison, said there are still "complex and significant legal issues yet to be decided".

According the US Department of Justice, Merchant was a trained operative of the Iranian government's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and was in the US to look for potential IRGC recruits.

Merchant arrived in the US from Pakistan in April 2024 after having spent time in Iran. In June of that year, he contacted a person who he believed could help with the assassination plot and that contact later reported him to the police.

He met with undercover US law enforcement officers who were posing as hitmen in New York, according to the US Attorney's Office in the Eastern District of New York, and law enforcement foiled the plot before any attack could be carried out.

He was arrested that July before leaving the country.

At trial, Merchant admitted that the IRGC sent him to the US to arrange for political assassinations and that his IRGC handler directed him to kill Trump, former US president Joe Biden and Trump cabinet official Nikki Haley, according to the BBC's US partner, CBS News.

The plot was meant to avenge the 2020 death of top Iranian general Qasem Soleimani, he said.

But Merchant argued that he "had no other option" than to go along with the plot because his handler indicated that he knew who Merchant's Iranian relatives were and where they lived.

He said he had anticipated being arrested before anyone was killed and intended to cooperate with the US government, CBS reported. He had hoped that would help him obtain a green card.

The jury deliberated for less than two hours before returning its verdict on Friday, US media said.

"Iran's terrorist regime sent Asif Merchant here to sow mayhem and murder," US Attorney Joseph Nocella Jr said.

"Thanks to the vigilance of our law enforcement partners, his scheme ended in failure. Today, with Merchant's conviction, that failure is complete."

In a statement to the BBC, Merchant's lawyer Christopher Neff said he was "disappointed in the result" but grateful for the jury's careful attention and hard work.

"Nevertheless, as Judge Komitee noted, there are complex and significant legal issues yet to be decided. We remain confident that we will ultimately achieve a favorable result for Mr Merchant," he said.