Former justice minister Irwin Cotler says RCMP told him Iranian plot to kill him was foiled
Cotler says he has been protected by RCMP day and night for more than a year
The RCMP has informed former justice minister Irwin Cotler that Iranian agents had planned to assassinate him, but the plot was thwarted.
The 84-year-old former Liberal MP, known for his human rights advocacy and vocal criticism of the Tehran regime, was notified last month of the discovery of a plan to kill him within 48 hours. Speaking to Radio-Canada, Cotler confirmed the information and revealed he has been under police protection for more than a year.
This protection includes round-the-clock armed officers, an armored vehicle, and other security measures. While reports suggest the threat level against Cotler may have been lowered, he could not confirm that. It remains unclear if any suspects connected to the plot have been apprehended or have fled.
Earlier this month, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi denied allegations from the U.S. that Tehran was involved in a separate murder-for-hire plot targeting former U.S. President Donald Trump. U.S. officials had accused Iran’s Revolutionary Guards of orchestrating the scheme, leading to charges against a man linked to the plan.
Investigators in the U.S. uncovered details of the plot through Farhad Shakeri, an alleged Iranian government operative with connections to criminal networks used for surveillance and assassination missions.
In a related case, the U.S. Department of Justice unsealed an indictment in January accusing two Canadians of planning assassinations on behalf of Iranian intelligence. One suspect, Damion Patrick John Ryan, reportedly a member of the Hells Angels, allegedly organized a group of gunmen between late 2020 and early 2021. He was said to be working with another Canadian, Adam Richard Pearson, who was living illegally in Minnesota at the time.
The indictment claims the men were hired by an Iranian drug dealer acting under the direction of a specific official in Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence and Security. They were allegedly plotting to kill two individuals in Maryland, including an Iranian defector. Pearson reportedly promised to recruit others and instructed them to repeatedly shoot the targets in the head to make a public example.
