The US State Department revealed a $20 million bounty for information that could lead to the capture of the alleged Iranian orchestrator behind a scheme to assassinate former White House official John Bolton.
In August 2022, US officials disclosed that they had discovered a conspiracy involving Shahram Poursafi, a member of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), to eliminate Bolton, who previously held the position of national security advisor under former President Donald Trump.
At that time, US prosecutors indicated that Poursafi was seeking someone based in the US to carry out the assassination of Bolton in the Washington area for a payment of $300,000.
Additionally, federal prosecutors mentioned that Poursafi had discussed an “additional job” for which he was willing to pay $1 million. It has also come to light that the Iranian plot was not limited to Bolton, as former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was also a target.
Last year, the US government imposed sanctions on Poursafi and several others whom they implicated in assassination schemes against Bolton and others worldwide.
According to a notice issued Thursday, the State Department’s “Rewards for Justice” program “is offering a reward of up to $20 million for information leading to the arrest or conviction” of Poursafi.
The Justice Department indicated that the assassination plan was likely triggered by the US killing of high-ranking IRGC commander Qassem Soleimani in Iraq in January 2020.
However, the plot never progressed because the would-be assassin turned out to be an informant for the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Iran has consistently expressed its intention to seek retribution for Soleimani’s death. In 2022, an animated video released on the website of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei illustrated the assassination of Trump, who authorized the airstrike that resulted in Soleimani’s death.
{Matzav.com}