The United States accuses Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince of sending an assassination squad to Canada to kill an ex-Saudi intelligence official who found refuge in the country.
Court documents filed in the US claimed that Salman ordered the assassination of Saad al-Jabri failed after the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi who was in Turkey at the time, as reported by BBC.
Hitman squad
Jabri was a government veteran of Saudi Arabia and fled after he was exiled three years ago. Since then, he has found asylum in Toronto and been placed under private security protection.
Salman's alleged assassination plot failed when Canadian border agents suspected of the group accused of being the hit-squad attempted to enter the nation through the Pearson International Airport in Toronto.
For years, 61-year-old Jabri was the key go-between for Britain's MI6 and other spy agencies from the West in the kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
The 106-page lawsuit was filed with the US District Court in Washington on Thursday and detailed allegations that Salman ordered a group of hitmen who were dubbed "Tiger Squad" to get close to and assassinate Jabri.
According to Aljazeera, Jabri claims his extensive ties with the United States intelligence community and vast knowledge of Salman's activities have caused the Crown Prince to prioritize him as a target that needs disposal.
The lawsuit wrote that there are only a few places that contain more sensitive, humiliating, and damaging information about Crown Prince Salman other than Jabri's own mind and memory and notes that alternative is the footage that the intelligence official recorded in preparation for the assassination.
The documents continue to state that the possibility of assassination is the crucial factor in giving Salman the motive to attempt and kill the intelligence official and why he has worked for the past three years to have him disposed of.
Discreet entrance
The claims alleged that the Tiger Squad attempted to enter Canada discreetly while carrying two bags of forensic tools and are filled with individuals with experience in forensics in cleaning up crime scenes. The group traveled using tourist visas and hoped to pass through border security by using separate kiosks.
Jabri had accused Salman of conducting frequent attempts to assassinate him or take him back to Saudi Arabia and stated the crown prince sent him a private message that said the monarch's reach would certainly extend to grab the intelligence official, as reported by Independent.
Family members of Jabri said Salman detained two of his children and his brother in an attempt to force him to come back to the country.
The intelligence official said the lawsuit he filed against the crown prince was due to the alleged assassination plot's substantial conduct within the United States.
Federal Minister of Public Safety Bill Clair of Canada said he was unable to comment on the case but noted the Canadian government knew of certain incidents where foreign entities have conducted monitoring, intimidation, or threatening of citizens and those residing in the country and called them completely unacceptable.
