The United States on Wednesday accused a member of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard of having drawn up plans to kill John Bolton, an American security adviser to the United Nations during the Trump administration.
The Justice Department alleged that Shahram Poursafi, also known as Mehdi Rezayi, 45, was planning Bolton’s assassination in retaliation for the killing of Qassem Soleimani, a Guard commander who was a victim of a US-led drone attack, in January 2020.
Iran has no extradition agreement with the Americans. For the FBI, which issued a “most wanted” ad for Poursafi, he is considered a fugitive.
According to a White House official, Washington does not think the accusation will affect negotiations with Tehran to resume the 2015 nuclear deal, under which the Iranians would halt their atomic program in exchange for lifting economic sanctions.
However, it is unclear how the Revolutionary Guard, a powerful institution in Iranian politics that controls several businesses, will react to the accusations. The Iranian mission to the United Nations did not comment.
Trump revoked the pact in 2018, restoring sanctions that prompted Iran to violate agreed terms of nuclear limits the following year. With that move, fears have resurfaced that the country could be developing an atomic arsenal — an ambition that Tehran denies having.
Indirect talks between the two countries took place in Vienna on Monday (8), in the presence of European Union authorities, who indicated progress towards the elaboration of a final text to revive the agreement.
According to the US indictment, Rezayi asked a US citizen (identified only as Individual A) to take pictures of John Bolton, on the pretext that they would be part of a book. The Subject then introduced the Iranian to a secret US government informant who could do the job for a price.
According to investigators, Rezayi contacted the informant through an encrypted messaging app and offered him $250,000 to hire someone to “eliminate” Bolton – an offer that later rose to US$200,000. $ 300 thousand (R$ 1.52 million).
The informant reported, in testimony, that he asked the Iranian for more details about the undertaking. The Guard member reportedly responded that he wanted “the guy” dead and provided the former Trump adviser’s first and last name.
Poursafi directed the government official to open a cryptocurrency account to facilitate payment, and claimed that it didn’t matter how Bolton was killed, because his “group” would request a video as proof of compliance with the deal.
In a statement on social media, Bolton thanked the Department of Justice for acting on this episode. “While much cannot be said publicly right now, one point is unquestionable,” she said. “Iranian leaders are liars, terrorists and enemies of the US.”
