Pakistani Man Claims Iranian Coercion in Alleged Plot to Kill Trump and Biden

A Pakistani national accused of plotting to assassinate leading American political figures told a federal jury in Brooklyn that Iranian intelligence operatives coerced him into participating in a scheme targeting Donald Trump, former President Joseph R. Biden Jr. and Nikki Haley.

Asif Merchant, 47, who is on trial on terrorism and murder for hire charges in Federal District Court in Brooklyn, testified on Wednesday that he had worked with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps but was forced to go along with the plot to protect his family in Tehran.

He has pleaded not guilty since his arrest in August 2024 and faces a potential life sentence if convicted. He is scheduled for cross examination on Thursday.

Taking the unusual step of testifying in his own defense, Merchant said he felt compelled to act. "I had no other options. My family was threatened," he informed the jury.

Merchant identified his handler as Mehrdad Yousef, whom he described as a member of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

How Did Asif Merchant Begin Working With Iranian Handler Mehrdad Yousef?

He said he began working with Yousef toward the end of 2022 after being introduced through a cousin named Husnain.

"He asked me if I was interested in doing some work with the Iranian government, and I said yes," Merchant testified.

Initially, the work involved transferring money to Iran through hawala, an informal and illegal system commonly used to evade economic sanctions.

Merchant said he was already involved in helping the Iranian regime evade sanctions through money laundering.

Over time, he said, the discussions turned more sinister. During a meeting in Tehran in March 2024, Yousef instructed him to travel to the United States to recruit individuals sympathetic to Iran’s cause and to orchestrate a plan with four elements, including arranging a protest, stealing documents, money laundering and "maybe to have somebody murdered."

Which US Political Leaders Did Asif Merchant Claim Were Named in the Alleged Iranian Plot?

Merchant in his testimony said, "He (Yousef) did not tell me exactly who it is, but he named three people to me: Donald Trump, Joe Biden and Nikki Haley," he explained.

At the time, Trump and Biden were frontrunners in the 2024 presidential race.

Merchant said Yousef trained him in counter surveillance techniques and that he was told to look for criminals, preferably Mafia members, to carry out the plot.

He clarified that by Mafia he meant small time criminals as understood in Pakistan.

In April 2024, Merchant traveled to the United States, arriving in Houston where his uncle lived. He was questioned for several hours by immigration agents about his recent trip to Iran and had his baggage and electronic devices searched.

Why Did Asif Merchant Believe the Alleged Iranian Plot Had Little Chance of Success?

He testified that he believed from that moment he was under surveillance and that the plot had little chance of success.

Despite this, he said he continued with the plan out of fear that Iranian security forces were monitoring him and could harm his wife and adopted daughter in Iran.

He described an encounter in which Yousef visited his home and brandished a weapon, though he did not detail specific threats.

"I was not wanting to do this so willingly," he said in court, speaking in Urdu with a translator by his side.

According to testimony and surveillance footage presented in court, Merchant met two individuals he believed to be hired assassins at a Queens motel in June 2024.

How Did the FBI Sting Operation Unravel Asif Merchant’s Alleged Assassination Plot?

The men were in fact undercover FBI agents. Prosecutors said Merchant paid them 5,000 dollars and was recorded discussing the mechanics of the plot, asking of a target, "This is the target. How will it die?"

Merchant argued that the 5,000 dollar payment demonstrated the lack of realism in the plot, stating that "nobody does anybody's murder" for such a small amount.

Prosecutors have rejected his claim that he acted under duress. In a filing, they said there was no evidence that he had plotted to kill American politicians "out of duress or fear for relatives."

On cross examination, prosecutor Nina Gupta asked Merchant whether he knew he was working with a designated terrorist organization. He said yes.

Did Asif Merchant Know He Was Being Recorded During the Queens Hotel Meeting?

She also asked whether he knew he was being recorded when he mapped out his plot on a napkin in a Queens hotel room. He said he had not.

Prosecutors have said the Revolutionary Guards Corps repeatedly sought to avenge Maj. Gen. Qassim Suleimani, who was killed by an American drone on Jan. 3, 2020.

On Tuesday, jurors were shown images retrieved from Merchant’s Facebook account depicting Trump’s decapitated head and Trump next to a pig.

Merchant described himself as a successful businessman. After a career as a banker, he said he exported bananas, sold cars, imported glass fiber insulation and worked in his uncle’s garment business.

He has five children with two wives, one in Pakistan and one in Iran. He met his second wife during a religious pilgrimage to Karbala in Iraq.

How Did FBI Informant Nadeem Ali Help Foil Asif Merchant’s Alleged Assassination Plot?

His efforts were ultimately thwarted in part by Nadeem Ali, whom Merchant believed to be a friend but who was an FBI informant.

Merchant was arrested in Richmond, Texas, on July 12, 2024, and brought to New York.

The trial unfolds amid heightened tensions between the United States and Iran. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Wednesday that an American strike had killed the leader of an Iranian covert unit that schemed to assassinate Trump in 2024.

The Trump administration has said Iran’s efforts to kill Trump were among the reasons behind the recent bombing campaign.

Merchant told the court that after his arrest he sought to cooperate with authorities and hoped to secure a green card and bring his family to the United States. "It appeared they thought I was some kind of super spy," he said.

(With inputs from ANI)