Iran placed $500,000 bounty on journalist in murder-for-hire, prosecutors say

• Prosecutors said Iran placed a $500,000 bounty on journalist Masih Alinejad, funding a murder plot that was thwarted by law enforcement. The trial involves two Russian mobsters accused of organizing the attack.
• Alinejad, a well-known activist, testified that she faced threats after encouraging Iranian women to defy hijab laws through online campaigns.
• The jury is set to begin deliberations after closing arguments, while a high-ranking Iranian military official faces separate charges.

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The Iranian government allegedly placed a $500,000 bounty on Iranian American journalist Masih Alinejad, funding an assassination plot aimed at silencing her, a prosecutor told jurors Wednesday, March 19, during closing arguments in a murder-for-hire trial.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Lockard said the alleged hitman was arrested in July 2022 before carrying out the attack, leading to the trial of two Russian mobsters accused of organizing the plot.

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Alinejad’s advocacy sparked threats

Alinejad testified that she faced persistent threats after launching online campaigns from her Brooklyn home, encouraging Iranian women to defy government dress codes. She left Iran in 2009, following a disputed presidential election, and later gained millions of followers worldwide through her activism.

One of her campaigns, “My Stealthy Freedom,” urged women to send videos of themselves with their hair uncovered in defiance of Iran’s hijab laws.

Prosecutor says Iran considered Alinejad an ‘enemy of the state’

Lockard told the jury that the Iranian government labeled Alinejad an enemy of the state, and tried for years to harass and intimidate her. When those efforts failed, he said Iran placed the bounty on her life.

He alleged that two high-ranking members of the Russian mob, Rafat Amirov and Polad Omarov, were paid by Iran to arrange the killing.

Defense argues defendants were not involved

Defense attorneys denied their clients were involved in any plot.

Michael Martin, representing Amirov, acknowledged that Iran had targeted Alinejad but argued his client was not part of the scheme. He also criticized the credibility of Khalid Mehdiyev, the alleged hitman, who testified that he was paid $30,000 to carry out the killing, and who was arrested before acting.

Mehdiyev was stopped by police for rolling through a stop sign, and a loaded AK-47 was found in his backseat. Martin called him a “manipulative, violent, lying person.”

Elena Fast, representing Omarov, said Mehdiyev was a “clown as a hitman” and suggested that those discussing the plot were only attempting to scam money without intending to commit a crime.

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Additional charges in the case

Separately, the U.S. Department of Justice announced charges against an Iranian military official, Brig. Gen. Ruhollah Bazghandi of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps, for allegedly orchestrating the assassination plot.