Asif Merchant: Inside details about Pakistani national hired by Iran to 'assassinate' Donald Trump

In July, Asif Merchant was detained as he prepared to depart the U.S., revealing, through federal informant recordings, that he had families in both Iran and Pakistan. The FBI ’s affidavit suggested he had entered the U.S. with the intention of orchestrating the assassination of a “political figure.” Although the target wasn’t explicitly identified in the document, evidence strongly indicated that Merchant was hired to target Donald Trump , with up to $1 million offered for the task.

Leaked documents released by Senator Charles Grassley showed that Merchant had remotely monitored a Trump rally, sending detailed reports to Tehran about event security, such as guard numbers and the presence of body scanners.

This led the FBI to discover that Merchant was plotting an assassination with the informant, which included using a staged demonstration as a distraction to strike a target surrounded by security. Despite the Secret Service's enhanced protective measures, Trump was attacked at a Pennsylvania rally on July 13.

Authorities found no definitive connection between Merchant and Thomas Matthew Crooks , the shooter at the July 13 incident, nor Ryan Wesley Routh , who later attempted an attack on Trump in Florida. However, Routh’s writings showed sympathy for Iran and criticized U.S. sanctions against the country.

Further details from the arrest affidavit revealed Merchant admitted to the FBI that his involvement with the IRGC (Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps) was driven by financial motives. He had been given instructions by his Iranian handler, Mehrdad Yousef, in January to identify possible targets including Trump, Joe Biden, and Nikki Haley. Merchant’s focus on gathering intelligence for Trump’s rallies, coupled with discussions about assassination logistics with the informant, indicated serious intent to execute the plan.
Iran's hostility toward Trump stems from the 2020 drone strike that killed General Qasem Soleimani .

Since then, Iran’s threats against Trump have intensified, with ongoing efforts to exact "justice" as promised by Iranian leaders. Merchant’s arrest, though not widely publicized, underscores Iran's readiness to target prominent American figures abroad.
Merchant’s background reveals he grew up in an affluent Karachi family, managing a $70 million portfolio. Despite his wealthy origins, financial incentives drove his involvement with the IRGC. In April, he traveled to Texas to visit family before moving to New York in June, where he was met by a federal informant. Staying at a Long Island hotel, Merchant revealed that their supposed business partnership was merely a cover for a more sinister mission: assassination. He reportedly illustrated this with a "finger gun" gesture.

In advancing the assassination plot , Merchant sought to hire additional assassins and confirmed with his IRGC contact that Trump was a priority target, although other political figures were mentioned. After this, he began actively surveilling Trump’s rallies and sent detailed security observations back to his Iranian handler.

Merchant’s plot involved recruiting up to 30 accomplices, outstripping any known Iranian assassination missions in terms of scale and complexity. He even suggested scouting Brooklyn clubs for potential collaborators, showcasing his determination and belief in the mission. His use of coded language, where "T-shirt" stood for protest and "fleece jacket" for assassination, demonstrated his experience in clandestine operations.

Though the full extent of Merchant’s life in Pakistan remains unclear, his actions in the U.S. depicted a man entrenched in both high society and dangerous espionage, driven by financial gains to undertake this high-risk assassination endeavour.