Pakistani Man Testifies Iranian Pressure Led to Alleged Plot Against Trump
WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 04: U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a roundtable meeting on the administration's "ratepayer protection pledge" in the Indian Treaty Room at the White House on March 04, 2026 in Washington, DC. The pledge is a policy designed to shift rising energy costs from artificial intelligence data centers away from consumers. Win McNamee/Getty Images/AFP (Photo by WIN MCNAMEE / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP)
A Pakistani national on trial in a U.S. federal court has claimed that he was pressured by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) into planning an assassination plot that included former President Donald Trump among possible targets.
The 47-year-old defendant, identified as Asif Merchant, testified in Brooklyn that he became involved reluctantly, saying he feared for his family’s safety in Iran if he refused demands from an Iranian handler linked to the IRGC.
Prosecutors allege Merchant tried to recruit people in the U.S. to carry out the scheme, which also named President Joe Biden and former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley as possible targets. Merchant claimed he never intended the plan to succeed and expected authorities to intervene.
According to U.S. media, the accused was arrested after meeting what he believed were hired killers — who were actually undercover FBI agents — and paying them about $5,000. Merchant has pleaded not guilty to terrorism and murder-for-hire charges and faces a possible life sentence if convicted.
The trial unfolds amid heightened tensions between the U.S. and Iran, and Tehran has denied involvement in targeting U.S. leaders.
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