A federal jury delivered guilty verdicts against two Eastern European men on Thursday after a brief deliberation, concluding that they were hired by Iran to send a hitman to assassination an Iranian dissident at her Brooklyn residence. The target, Masih Alinejad, is a journalist and activist and has nearly 9 million Instagram followers and is at odds with Iran’s Supreme Leader. The plot, unchanged since 2022, represents at least the third Iranian effort to take Alinejad’s life and marks the first instance in a U.S. courtroom that detailed the regime’s assassination machinery. The Justice Department previously indicted Iranian officials for assassination attempts directed at U.S. officials, including Donald Trump, and the prosecutors on the 24th floor of a Manhattan courthouse provided granular details of the alleged Iranian operation.
Brigadier General Ruhollah Bazghandi was shown to have repeatedly searched for information on Masih Alinejad through a Google account managed under the alias “Alex Peterson.” Other Iranian intelligence officials frequently searched for “Rafat the thief,” a nickname referencing Rafat Amirov’s status as the mob’s contact for the Iranian intelligence. Earlier, Iran had already tried to abduct Alinejad in 2020, and it is unclear how much of the promised $500,000 for the assassination had been transferred. Following the suspect’s arrest near Alinejad’s home with an assault rifle and a ski mask, the Iranians demanded the return of their money.
A message sent to the handler responsible for Amirov’s gang on October 4th threatened consequences if the job wasn’t done by Saturday and demanded the return of the deposit. The evidence was drawn from phones seized or handed over by American internet companies and this overwhelming digital evidence led to the conviction. In the trial, Khalid Mehdiyev, 27, cooperated with the government and acknowledged participating in the plot. Defense lawyers, however, questioned the credibility of Mehdiyev’s testimony, pointing out his motivations for cooperating.
Elena Fast, Omarov’s attorney, argued that her client and Mehdiyev committed a scam intending to deceive the Iranians and Amirov. Alinejad testified, expressing her fear and the ongoing threats from Iran. She described looking out her window to see Mehdiyev in her flower bed and her immediate panic. The trial also included evidence like an incendiary cartoon published on a state-owned newspaper with the caption “Next. Be Ready” following a protest organized by Alinejad. The defense and prosecution alike recognized the hostile intent behind this cartoon.
Source: https://time.com/7270415/iran-assassins-new-york-trial-conviction-guilty-verdict-masih-alinejad/
