The Department of Justice has charged an Iranian man and two residents of New York who are suspected in murder-for-hire plots targeting then-candidate Donald Trump and others.
Officials said the suspects traveled to Fairfield University in an attempt to find one of their intended targets who was scheduled to appear there.
The U.S. Department of Justice said Farhad Shakeri, 51, of Iran; Carlisle Rivera, also known as Pop, 49, of Brooklyn, New York; and Jonathon Loadholt, 36, of Staten Island, New York, were charged murder-for-hire. Shakeri remains at large and is believed to reside in Iran.
Federal officials said Loadholt and Rivera, at Shakeri’s instruction, spent months surveilling a U.S. citizen of Iranian origin who is living in the United States.
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They said the victim is an outspoken critic of the Iranian regime and has been the target of multiple prior plots for kidnapping and or murder directed by the Government of Iran.
Journalist Masih Alinejad identified herself to NBC News as the person who was targeted.
During their efforts to locate and kill the victim, Shakeri, Loadholt and Rivera shared messages, officials said.
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In February 2024, Rivera and Loadholt messaged about an incoming payment from Shakeri and then traveled to Fairfield University, where the victim was scheduled to appear, and took photographs on campus according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
In April, Shakeri sent Rivera a series of voice notes discussing their efforts to locate and kill the victim, noting that she spent most of her time in particular locations of her home, and told Rivera that “you just gotta have patience…You gotta wait and have patience to catch her either going in the house or coming out, or following her out somewhere and taking care of it. Don’t think about going in. In is a suicide move.”
Alinejad posted on Twitter on Friday said she was "shocked" by the news and learned from the FBI that Loadholt and Rivera were arrested in a plot to kill her at Fairfield University, where she was scheduled to give a talk, NBC News reports.
"I also learned that the person assigned to assassinate @realDonaldTrump was also assigned to kill me on U.S. soil," she wrote. "The alleged killers also went in front of my house in Brooklyn. I call on the U.S. government and the future President of the United States to be tough on terror."
"The Islamic Republic understands only one language: the language of pressure," she wrote. "I came to America to practice my First Amendment right to freedom of speech — I don’t want to die. I want to fight against tyranny, and I deserve to be safe."
According to federal officials, Shakeri informed law enforcement that he was tasked on Oct. 7, 2024, with providing a plan to kill President-elect Donald J. Trump.
During the interview, Shakeri claimed he did not intend to propose a plan to kill Trump within the timeframe set by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. He also stated he was tasked with surveilling two Jewish American citizens residing in New York City and offered $500,000 by an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps official for the murder of either victim.
He was also tasked with targeting Israeli tourists in Sri Lanka, according to the Justice Department.
During Trump's first term, he ordered a drone attack in Iraq that killed Quds Force Leader Qasem Soleimani. The U.S. has blamed him for killing Americans in terror attacks.
"The Iranians are still really upset about the death of General Soleimani," retired FBI special agent and criminal justice lecturer at the University of New Haven Kenneth Gray said.
Gray said he's surprised Americans were recruited to execute the plot rather than Iranian agents themselves.
Students at Fairfield University were in disbelief about what happened.
"Wow. Yeah, we heard a little about that," junior Liam McIlroy said.
"You never think about it happening like that in Fairfield. It's a nice calm place. Otherwise, it's the crazy world we live in," junior Jonathan Kuzcik said.
NBC Connecticut has reached out to Fairfield University officials who had no comment about this case.
