Is There a Link Between Arrest of Pakistani Man and Trump Assassination Attempt?

A Pakistani man suspected of plotting on behalf of Iran to kill high-ranking U.S. politicians or officials — including Donald Trump — is in U.S. custody after being charged with trying to hire hit men to carry out the plot, according to U.S. officials and court documents.

Asif Merchant, 46, was arrested in Texas on July 12 as he prepared to leave the country, prosecutors said.

While former president Trump was apparently on Merchant’s “murder for hire” hit list, U.S. officials said that the plot does not appear to be connected to the recent assassination attempt on Trump at a rally in Butler County, Pennsylvania. Rather, officials said, the plot appears to be related to efforts by Iran to retaliate for the killing of Iranian General Qasem Soleimani in a U.S. drone strike Trump ordered in Iraq in 2020.

Thomas Matthew Crooks was the shooter in the assassination attempt on Trump, where the former president was wounded, and Crooks was shot and killed by the Secret Service. Merchant was arrested on July 12 before he was set to leave the country and charged with Murder for Hire. His arrest came just one day before Crooks was shot and killed at the scene.

While at the moment there does not seem to be any connections between Crooks and Merchant, Attorney General Merrick Garland said the shooting at the rally is still under investigation and has not ruled out the discovery of evidence linking Crooks to Merchant’s murder-for-hire plot as both investigations unfold.

Counter-terrorism experts say it is unclear if Merchant had been receiving orders directly from Iran or if he was inspired to act on his own. However, they said the characteristics of his plan match a pattern that has become more common since the U.S. killing of Iranian military leader Qasem Soleimani in 2020.

“We hadn’t seen necessarily targeting of one individual by terrorist organizations or state government organizations. They tend to be large-scale plots to kill as many people as possible,” said Seamus Hughes, a senior researcher at the National Counter Terrorism Innovation, Technology and Education Center. “Now we’re seeing this kind of move into individualized targeting, individualized assassination plots. That gets a little bit harder for Law enforcement.”

Hughes said the FBI’s use of informants and undercover agents was critical to arresting Merchant before he could carry out his alleged plan or flee the country.