Two men tied to an Azerbaijani faction of the Russian mob were sentenced to 25 years in prison for a murder-for-hire plot that U.S. prosecutors say was commissioned by the Iranian government to kill journalist and activist Masih Alinejad. The convictions followed a March 2025 trial that produced detailed evidence of surveillance, payments, weapons purchases, and coordination across continents. The case spotlights transnational repression and the role of criminal networks used by foreign regimes to target dissidents on American soil.
Rafat Amirov and Polad Omarov were convicted of murder-for-hire, attempted murder in aid of racketeering, and related offenses after a two-week trial before U.S. District Judge Colleen McMahon. Each defendant faces a 25-year term for their part in the plot to assassinate Masih Alinejad, a journalist, author, and human rights activist who has criticized the Iranian regime. Prosecutors say the operation was directed by high-ranking members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and executed by mob associates.
“The defendants and their criminal associates came chillingly close to gunning down an Iranian-American journalist on the streets of New York.” said Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg. “Tehran has long sought to silence Ms. Alinejad, and after multiple failed kidnapping attempts, turned to Omarov and Amirov and their organization to stalk and murder her. This case is part of a well-documented and disturbing rise in plots involving criminal networks paid by Iran to target dissidents in the United States and around the world. We are committed to holding accountable those who join forces with this vile regime to violate our national sovereignty or threaten U.S. citizens.”
Law enforcement officials described Amirov as a Vor, or thief-in-law, a high-ranking figure within the Russian mob, and Omarov as the cousin of a powerful Vor with ambitions of similar status. The plot reportedly spanned three continents, with handlers in Iran providing targeting information and criminal operatives in the U.S. and Europe arranging surveillance and logistics. Prosecutors presented evidence showing coordination, money transfers, and direct orders tied to the IRGC.
Federal agents say the IRGC offered Amirov $500,000 to kill Alinejad and supplied her home address and other targeting details. In July 2022, Amirov forwarded that information to Omarov, who in turn passed it to an associate in Yonkers identified as a hitman. That associate, Mehdiyev, was paid roughly $30,000 to acquire an AK-47, two magazines, and 66 rounds of ammunition, according to charging materials.
FBI Assistant Director in Charge Christopher G. Raia welcomed the arrest. “Rafat Amirov and Polad Omarov, two highly ranked members of the Russian Mob, attempted to assassinate Masih Alinejad to permanently silence her criticism of the Iranian government and public advocacy of human rights. These defendants operated as unlawful enforcers for a foreign government to target an American journalist on our nation’s soil. May yesterday’s sentencing emphasize the FBI’s steadfast commitment to protecting Americans against any foreign actor seeking to inflict terror and physical harm to further a political agenda.”
Surveillance activity intensified in July 2022, when Mehdiyev repeatedly traveled to Alinejad’s Brooklyn neighborhood to stake out her residence and to send photos and videos to Omarov and Amirov. On July 24, Mehdiyev reported he was “at the crime scene.” Messages captured in the investigation show Omarov urging action: “this matter will be over today. I told them to make a birthday present for me. I pressured them, they will sleep there this night.” On July 28, Mehdiyev sent a video from inside a car showing the assault rifle and wrote, “we are ready.”
Police stopped Omarov during a traffic stop while he was allegedly stalking Alinejad and found an AK-47 with 66 rounds, including one in the chamber, as well as cash, gloves, and a black ski mask. After Mehdiyev’s arrest, Omarov is accused of contacting Mehdiyev’s mother and threatening her and another son unless Mehdiyev was located and the IRGC’s money returned. Authorities say those threats demonstrated the pressure from the foreign handlers and the criminal group’s willingness to use violence.
“The Government of Iran, a sponsor of terrorism, assassination, and espionage around the globe, brazenly brought its efforts to murder Masih Alinejad to New York,” said U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Jay Clayton. “The plot exposed at trial involved actors on three continents, culminating with a hitman with an AK-47 outside Ms. Alinejad’s apartment in Brooklyn. Yesterday’s sentences send a clear message: the DOJ and our partners will expose and severely punish those who target U.S. citizens and bring terror to our community.”
Assistant Director Roman Rozhavsky of the FBI’s Counterintelligence Division framed the outcome as a victory against transnational repression. “This sentencing marks a victory for justice and a clear warning to those who seek to export repression onto U.S. soil,” he said, stressing that authoritarian actors will go to extreme lengths to silence dissidents abroad. The investigation involved cooperation across agencies and international partners to track payments, communications, and travel tied to the plot.
The prosecution was handled by the Office’s National Security and International Narcotics Unit, with Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael D. Lockard, Jacob H. Gutwillig, and Matthew J.C. Hellman leading the case and support from Trial Attorneys Christopher Rigali and Leslie Esbrook of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section. The convictions close a direct threat to an outspoken critic of the Iranian regime and underscore the intersection of organized crime and state-directed violence.
