BROOKLYN — AZERBAIJANI NATIONAL KHALID MEHDIYEV testified this week in a Manhattan murder-for-hire trial, revealing how the Russian gang he is a member of was allegedly recruited to kill Masih Alinejad, an Iranian journalist and outspoken critic of Tehran who has been the target of previous assassination attempts by the regime.
The New York Times reports that Mehdiyev admitted in court that he staked out Alinejad’s Brooklyn home in July 2022 after being offered $160,000 for the killing. He was arrested near her residence with an AK-47-style rifle and a ski mask.
The murder plot allegedly originated with members of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, coordinating through a Russian mob leader. A brigadier general in the IRGC has also been charged in the case, along with two other alleged gang members.
Mehdiyev, now cooperating with prosecutors, pleaded guilty to multiple charges, including attempted murder.
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