The United States Justice Department said that they have charged an Iranian individual who allegedly plotted to assassinate former national security adviser John Bolton.
After the assassination attempt, the official on Wednesday criticized President Joe Biden's administration for negotiating with Iran on a new nuclear deal. Bolton argued that the government's attempts to "appease" Tehran is encouraging threats against U.S. officials.
Iranian Assassination Plot
In an interview, Bolton said that because the nature of the Iranian regime "drives it to this kind of action," Biden should not be trying to revive a 2015 deal. He argued that the agreement limited Iran's nuclear abilities in exchange for easing U.S. sanctions against the Middle Eastern nation.
Bolton said that it was a big mistake for the Biden administration to continue to show weakness to Iran by asking to get back to the 2015 nuclear agreement. The official has long been skeptical of Iran and argued that these only encourage Tehran to conduct terrorist activities.
The Iranian nationalist that the Justice Department charged on Wednesday is a member of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). The individual allegedly plotted to hire someone to kill off Bolton, as per The Hill.
The department also said that the individual, identified as Shahram Poursafi, began plotting the assassination in October, likely to retaliate against Bolton for a January 2020 U.S. drone strike that killed Qassem Soleimani, the leader of the IRGC's elite Quds Force.
The suspect allegedly planned to pay up to $300,000 for someone to assassinate Bolton in Maryland or Washington, D.C., said the Justice Department. He was reportedly in contact with a U.S. resident whom he asked to kill the official. The resident is listed as a confidential source in department documents.
According to CNN, prosecutors said that the 45-year-old suspect, while already attempting to pay $300,000 to one individual for Bolton's assassination, had a second job for $1 million. Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was also found to be another target of the Iranian assassination plot.
John Bolton
Poursafi, who has not yet been arrested, asked the U.S.-based individual to take photos of Bolton for a "book that Poursafi was writing," court documents revealed. Later, the Iranian nationalist asked if the informant could hire a person to "eliminate someone" who was revealed to be Bolton.
The suspect also suggested that the murder be done "by car," provided the CHS with an address for Bolton's office, and noted that the official had a habit of taking walks alone. The informant traveled to Washington, D.C. in November 2021 and sent Poursafi images of Bolton's office and descriptions of the building.
The Iranian allegedly said that the killing should happen in the building's garage, as it was a "high traffic" area. Poursafi has been charged with the use of interstate commerce facilities in the commission of murder-for-hire, with carries a 10-year maximum prison sentence.
In a press release, Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen of the Justice Department's National Security Division said, "The Justice Department has the solemn duty to defend our citizens from hostile governments who seek to hurt or kill them. This is not the first time we have uncovered Iranian plots to exact revenge against individuals on U.S. soil and we will work tirelessly to expose and disrupt every one of these efforts," Fox News reported.
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