Two high-ranking members of an Azerbaijani faction of the Russian mob have been sentenced to 25 years in federal prison for plotting to murder Iranian-American journalist and human rights activist Masih Alinejad on behalf of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), prosecutors announced last week.
According to court filings and evidence presented at trial, Rafat Amirov, 46, and Polad Omarov, 41, conspired to have Alinejad killed after earlier Iranian efforts to kidnap her from the United States failed in 2020 and 2021.
Alinejad, a vocal critic of the Iranian regime, has long drawn the ire of Tehran for her outspoken advocacy for women’s rights and democracy.
Federal prosecutors described Amirov as a Vor—a “Thief-in-Law,” the highest rank in the Russian mob—and Omarov as the cousin of another powerful Vor who sought to earn his own standing in the criminal hierarchy.
Working through Iranian operatives, the IRGC offered Amirov $500,000 to orchestrate Alinejad’s assassination, providing him with her home address and personal details.
Amirov relayed that information to Omarov, who in turn recruited Khalid Mehdiyev, a mob associate living in Yonkers, N.Y., to carry out the hit.
The men funneled $30,000 of the advance payment to Mehdiyev, who used part of the money to purchase an AK-47-style rifle, two magazines, and 66 rounds of ammunition, according to the indictment.
In July 2022, Mehdiyev repeatedly scouted Alinejad’s Brooklyn home, sending photos and videos of his surveillance to Omarov and Amirov. “This matter will be over today,” Omarov texted Amirov on July 27. “I told them to make a birthday present for me.”
The next day, Mehdiyev sent a video from his car showing the assault rifle and messaged, “We are ready.” Moments later, police stopped his vehicle for a traffic violation and discovered the loaded rifle, ammunition, cash, gloves, and a ski mask. He was arrested before the plot could be carried out.
Following Mehdiyev’s arrest, Omarov allegedly threatened Mehdiyev’s mother, warning he would kill her and her other son if she failed to help recover the IRGC’s money.
Both Amirov and Omarov were convicted in March after a two-week trial in Manhattan federal court. In addition to their prison terms, each was ordered to pay a $500 special assessment, prosecutors said.
Alinejad, who has survived multiple Iranian plots against her, has said she refuses to be silenced. “They tried to kidnap me. They tried to kill me. But they cannot stop my voice,” she said in a recent interview.
PBS News Broadcast earlier this year