TWO hitmen have been arrested and charged in connection with a thwarted Iran-backed plot to kill Donald Trump.

The alleged assassination bid was placed in the hands of a gun for hire in late September, with plans to take out the president-elect before the November 5 election.

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An Iranian operative was allegedly tapped by the Middle East regime to assassinate Donald Trump before Election DayCredit: AP:Associated Press

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Iranian operative Farhad Shakeri allegedly used his criminal network to tap two New Yorkers to conduct surveillance and assassination operations on behalf of IranCredit: US District Court

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A Smith & Wesson .380 pistol that was allegedly in the possession of Jonathan LoadholtCredit: US District Court

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The arsenal of weapons allegedly possessed by another of the accused Iranian operatives, Carlisle RiveraCredit: US District Court
Shocking details of the sick plot were revealed on Friday after the FBI announced the arrests and noted that a third hitman is still on the loose.

An unnamed official with Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard contacted one man, identified as Farhad Shakeri, in December 2023 and first instructed him to put together a plan to assassinate a US citizen, federal officials said.

The target, identified as Masih Alinejad, an Iranian-American journalist who lives in Brooklyn and had repeatedly been outspoken about the regime.

Shakeri, a career criminal who previously served 14 years in a US prison for a robbery conviction, allegedly used his criminal network to tap two New York City residents to conduct surveillance and assassination operations on behalf of the Iranian government.

Between February and April, Shakeri exchanged a series of voice messages with his co-defendants, Carlisle Rivera of Brooklyn and Jonathan Loadholt of Staten Island, discussing Alinejad’s whereabouts, routine, and how the victim spent most of her time at home.

Shakeri, 51, instructed Rivera and Loadholt, 36, to sit tight and wait for their opportunity to take out the victim.

“You just gotta have patience,” Shakeri told Rivera, 49, in one of the voice messages, according to the DOJ.

“You gotta wait and have patience to catch her either going in the house or coming out, or following her out somewhere and taking care of it.

“Don’t think about going in. In is a suicide move.”

However, in mid to late September, Shakeri was ordered to drop all his plans and establish a plot to survey and ultimately assassinate Donald Trump.

Shakeri allegedly instructed Rivera and Loadholt ‘patient and wait for their opportunity to take out one of their targetsCredit: US District Court

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Donald Trump speaks at a campaign rally in Allentown, Pennsylvania, on October 29Credit: AP

‘MONEY’S NOT AN ISSUE’

Shakeri told the Iranian official that the new request would “cost a huge amount of money.”

The unnamed Iranian paramilitary official responded, “We have already spent a lot of money… [s]o the money’s not an issue,” according to the indictment.

If Shakeri was unable to create a meticulous plan, they would pause the plan until after November 5, when Iranian officials believed “Trump would lose and it would easier to assassinate him,” according to the criminal complaint.

Shakeri met with the military official on October 7 – the first anniversary of the Hamas terror attack on Israel – where they instructed him to present an assassination attempt within seven days.

However, Shakeri claimed to the FBI that he did not intend to propose a plan to kill Trump within the timeframe set by the Iranian government, the DOJ said.

Attorney General Merrick Garland called Iran a “grave threat to the national security of the United States.”

“The Justice Department has charged an asset of the Iranian regime who was tasked by the regime to direct a network of criminal associates to further Iran’s assassination plots against its targets, including President-elect Donald J. Trump,” Garland said.

“We have also charged and arrested two individuals who were allege were recruited as part of that network to silence and kill, on US Sol, an American journalist who has been a prominent critic of the regime.

“We will not stand or the Iranian regime’s attempts to endanger the American people and America’s national security.”

Timeline of assassination attempts on Donald Trump’s life

July 13 – Thomas Crooks shot Donald Trump in the ear after hiding on a roof overlooking the former President’s outdoor rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.

Crooks was killed by Secret Service snipers after he fired eight shots at Trump and killed one rallygoer and injured two others.

The bullet came less than a quarter of an inch from striking Trump’s head, Ronny Jackson, the former president’s physician, said.

September 15 – Ryan Routh was seen by a Secret Service agent hiding in the bushes with a rifle at the Trump International Golf Club in Florida.

Trump was playing a round of golf when the alleged would-be assassin managed to get within 400 yard of Trump.

Routh fled the scene in an SUV but was caught by cops and arrested.

September 25 – Donald Trump posts on social media that he’s been informed of an Iranian plot against his life.

October 7 – Farhad Shakeri is given an order by an official in Iran’s Revolutionary Guard to come up with a plan to kill Donald Trump within seven days.

He told the FBI that he never intended to devise a plan in that timeframe, but allegedly discussed it with two hired guns in New York.

November 7 – Carlisle Rivera of Brooklyn and Jonathan Loadholt of Staten Island are arrested in New York for being part of the plot to kill Donald Trump along with three other Americans Iran deemed targets.

‘BIG THREATS’

On September 25, Trump disclosed in an X post that he had been briefed about a plan by Iran to assassinate him.

“Big threats on my life by Iran. The entire U.S. Military is watching and waiting,” Trump wrote.

“Moves were already made by Iran that didn’t work out, but they will try again. Not a good situation for anyone.

“I am surrounded by more men, guns, and weapons than I have ever seen before.”

It’s unclear if Trump’s September 25 assassination briefing is connected to Shakeri’s plot.

Shakeri told federal investigators that he was also tasked with surveilling two Jewish American citizens residing in New York City and was offered $500,000 for the murder of either victim.

Rivera, Loadholt, and Shakeri were charged with murder-for-hire, conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire, and money laundering conspiracy.

Loadholt and Rivera were arrested on Thursday and denied bail.

Shakeri, who is still at large and believed to reside in Iran, was also charged with conspiring to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization.

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A text exchange between Rivera and Loadholt, according to federal investigators