Two Iranian Men Named In Attempted Terror Plot

Two Iranian citizens, allegedly acting on behalf of factions of the Iranian government, have been charged with conspiracy to assassinate the Saudi Arabian Ambassador to the United States and bombing the embassy of Saudi Arabia in Washington, D.C.

The two suspects include Manssor Arbab Arbabsiar, a 56-year-old U.S and Iranian citizen, and Gholam Shakuri, an Iran-based member of a special operations unit responsible for promoting international terrorism.

Arbabsiar was arrested on September 29, 2011 at New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport and will appear in a federal court Tuesday. Shakuri is still at large.  

The criminal complaint alleges that Arbabsiar and his Iran-based co-conspirators, including Shakuri, have been plotting the murder of the Saudi Ambassador to the United States since the Spring of 2011. More than $100,000 in support of the plot had been transferred to a bank in New York but they had not yet obtained the explosives.

“Through the diligent and coordinated efforts of our law enforcement and intelligence agencies, we were able to disrupt this plot before anyone was harmed,” Attorney General Eric Holder told reporters in a news conference on Tuesday. “We will continue to investigate this matter vigorously and bring those who have violated any laws to justice.”

The men are charged with one count of conspiracy to murder a foreign official, two counts of foreign travel and use of interstate and foreign commerce facilities in the commission of murder for hire and one count each of conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction and conspiracy to commit an act of terrorism.

If convicted of all five charges against him, Arbabsiar faces a maximum potential sentence of life in prison.