Pakistani Man Declares Not Guilty in US Assassination Plot Charges, Reports Reuters

By Luc Cohen

In New York, a Pakistani individual with alleged connections to Iran entered a not guilty plea on Monday regarding charges linked to a supposed conspiracy to assassinate an American politician. This plot was reportedly motivated by the killing of Qassem Soleimani, the top commander of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards.

Asif Merchant, 46, made his plea during a hearing in front of U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert Levy in Brooklyn, facing one count of attempting to commit terrorism across national borders and another count of murder for hire. The judge ordered that he remain detained while awaiting trial.

Prosecutors allege that Merchant spent time in Iran before coming to the United States to recruit others for the alleged plot. According to their statements, he confided in a confidential informant about plans to steal documents from a target and to organize protests within the U.S.

Although Merchant mentioned Donald Trump as a potential target, it has been reported by an anonymous source that he did not intend for this plan to be an assassination of the former president. Court documents do not specify any intended targets, and no actual attacks occurred. Trump had previously authorized a drone strike against Soleimani in 2020.

Currently, there is no connection between Merchant and a potential assassination attempt on Trump at his golf course in Florida, or a shooting incident involving another Republican presidential candidate at a rally in Pennsylvania earlier this year.

During the hearing, Merchant appeared in an olive prison T-shirt over an orange undershirt, with a salt-and-pepper beard. He is being held at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn following his arrest in Texas on July 15.

Defense attorney Avraham Moskowitz raised concerns about the conditions of Merchant’s incarceration, informing the court that he had been isolated, permitted only one exercise session in two months, and had lost 15 to 20 pounds due to the lack of a halal diet suitable for a Shi’ite Muslim.

"This is literally torture," Moskowitz stated. In response, prosecutor Sara Winik indicated she would communicate with the Bureau of Prisons to ensure that Merchant received an appropriate diet.

The Bureau reportedly stated that it takes its responsibility to protect inmates seriously and that halal meals are available at the facility.

In August, Iran’s mission to the United Nations asserted that the actions described in Merchant’s court documents contradicted Tehran’s policy of seeking legal justice for the murder of General Soleimani.