Man Sentenced to 15 Years in Murder-For-Hire Plot Targeting Iranian Dissident Masih Alinejad

Carlisle Rivera was sentenced to 15 years in federal prison after prosecutors said he was hired by Iranian operative Farhad Shakeri in a murder-for-hire scheme aimed at Iranian dissident and activist Masih Alinejad. The sentencing took place Wednesday in federal court in Manhattan, where Alinejad — who has survived multiple alleged plots against her life — directly confronted Rivera.

Plot Allegedly Orchestrated By Iran-Linked Operative

Prosecutors say Shakeri, acting on behalf of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), directed a network of criminal associates to carry out assassination plots overseas and on U.S. soil. Authorities allege Shakeri recruited Rivera and Jonathan Loadholt in New York and offered $100,000 to kill Alinejad. Federal investigators also say Shakeri told them the IRGC tasked him with a separate plot to kill former President Donald Trump before the 2024 election.

Planned Attack And Foiled Plot

The planned attack was scheduled for February 2024 at Fairfield University in Connecticut, where Alinejad was to speak. After months of surveillance, law enforcement disrupted the scheme; Rivera and Loadholt were arrested in November 2024 and later pleaded guilty. Loadholt’s sentencing is scheduled for April 23.

Victim Reaction And Courtroom Moments

Alinejad, an outspoken critic of Iran's repression of women, told the judge,

“Now I'm going to face the killer, my would-be assassin. But the main killer in my eyes is the IRGC.”

She described how the regime aims to silence dissidents and said the sentencing represented personal justice but not full accountability for those she believes ordered the plots.

Her husband, Kambiz Foroohar, urged Judge Lewis Liman to impose the maximum sentence to send a message that anyone who does the Islamic Republic’s "dirty work" will be held accountable. Foroohar described how threats forced the family to abandon their home and live in constant fear.

Evidence And Background

Prosecutors presented voice notes and messages exchanged between Rivera and Shakeri that discussed methods such as a home-invasion-style break-in or a drive-by shooting. Authorities say Rivera and Shakeri first met while in the New York prison system: Shakeri had been serving a manslaughter sentence, and Rivera had served 18 years after a murder conviction at age 18. The judge called some of their recorded conversations "chilling."

Rivera, dressed in a tan prison uniform, wept and apologized in court. His fiancée was present and visibly upset; during a break Alinejad embraced her and the woman repeatedly apologized.

Wider Context

This is the third alleged Iran-linked plot targeting Alinejad: in October two men prosecutors said were members of a Russian mob hired by Iran were each sentenced to 25 years for an earlier attempt at her Brooklyn home. Shakeri is believed to be in Iran and is not in U.S. custody.

Alinejad has publicly accused Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and the IRGC of ordering attempts on her life. She pointed to public remarks by Iranian leadership that she says amount to threats. After the sentencing she told CBS News,

“Justice is always beautiful. It is justice for me.”

But she added that true accountability would include prosecuting those who ordered the plots.

Case Status: Rivera sentenced to 15 years; Loadholt to be sentenced April 23; Shakeri believed to remain in Iran. Alinejad continues to speak and campaign against repression in Iran.