Report reveals Iranian regime’s shift from elite operatives to street-level criminals for high-risk missions on U.S. soil
While U.S. officials have long warned about the threat of Iranian “sleeper cells,” a new report by The New York Times reveals that the Iranian regime is increasingly relying on low-level criminals and untrained intermediaries to carry out high-risk operations inside the United States—including an alleged plot to assassinate former President Donald Trump.
This unconventional approach, which avoids the use of elite intelligence units, has sparked fresh concerns about the extent and nature of Tehran’s covert network in the U.S.
Criminal Recruits for Covert Missions
Following U.S. airstrikes on Iranian nuclear facilities, American intelligence agencies issued warnings about potential retaliatory actions by the regime, including the activation of sleeper cells. However, recent court filings and newly obtained evidence indicate that the regime has often turned to individuals lacking any professional experience or training.
According to the Times, during the 2024 U.S. presidential campaign, an Iranian military official tasked Farhad Shakeri—an Afghan national residing in Tehran—with the mission of assassinating Donald Trump. Shakeri reportedly recruited two former associates he had met in U.S. prisons to assist with the plot. The plan was disrupted before it could be executed, with all suspects arrested by federal authorities.
In another case, a member of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) allegedly sought to hire criminal operatives to assassinate former U.S. National Security Advisor John Bolton.
A Pattern of Proxy Operations
These incidents are part of a broader pattern. The report highlights previous Iranian efforts to conduct targeted killings using criminal intermediaries. Notable examples include:
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The 2011 plot to bomb a luxury restaurant in Washington, D.C., in an attempt to assassinate the Saudi ambassador, using operatives with ties to the Mexican drug cartels.
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The attempted recruitment of Russian mafia members for covert hits.
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A foiled plan involving a member of the Hells Angels motorcycle gang, who was allegedly hired to kill an Iranian dissident in Maryland.
Experts Question Regime Capabilities
Bruce Hoffman, a counterterrorism expert at Georgetown University, cautioned against dismissing the sleeper cell threat and said that, they “can’t be discounted.” But emphasized the amateur nature of recent plots. “The incidents we’ve seen in recent years have probably been from the C-team.”
Rising Concerns Over Border Security
Between 2021 and 2024, U.S. border authorities arrested approximately 1,700 Iranian nationals at the southern border. While it remains unclear how many were ordinary migrants, regime dissidents, or covert operatives, the recent wave of arrests has reignited concerns about infiltration.
In the wake of attacks on Iranian targets inside the country, U.S. officials detained nearly ten Iranian nationals for illegal entry, including one individual who had previously appeared on a terrorism watchlist.
A Persistent Long-Term Threat
Although Tehran has so far relied on poorly trained proxies, experts warn that the regime remains committed to revenge operations—and may not always rely on amateurs. As Hoffman noted, “They definitely subscribe to the aphorism that revenge is a dish best served cold.”
The report underscores a troubling evolution in Iran’s operational playbook—one that lowers the threshold for action but raises the risk of unpredictable and chaotic violence on American soil.
