Iran Has "Conspired To Kidnap Targets From The United States, Canada, And The United Kingdom.'

According to the US Department of Justice, four Iranians have been charged with kidnapping a New York-based journalist. The indictment did not name the target, but Iran-born Masih Alinejad said it was him. The conspirators, known as intelligence agents, also said they wanted to lure one person to Britain and three more to Canada in Iran.

All targets were critical of Iran, the Manhattan indictment said. Prosecutors said the Iranian government tried to lure New York journalists to a third country where the kidnapping was planned. Prosecutors claim that the conspirators even offered money to the author's relatives in Iran to convey his cause, but they refused.

The defendants are said to be living in Iran, authorities said. According to the indictment, the landlord had hired private investigators to spy on the Brooklyn home and families of the victims and produce a high-resolution live video of the property.

The kidnappers are also investigating a service that provided military-style motorboats for evacuations from New York and sea routes to Iran, an ally of Venezuela. Alinejad, 44, heads My Stealthy Freedom, which campaigns against the obligation to wear the hijab for Iranian women.

He told the New York Times that the conspiracy showed the Iranian authorities were "afraid" of him, "otherwise they wouldn't have sent anyone here to kidnap me." US officials said the kidnappers were assisted by a fifth defendant, California-based Nilufar Bahadorifar, who was arrested on July 1.

He was not charged with direct involvement in the conspiracy but instead provided financial assistance to the conspirators and violated sanctions against Iran. Bahadorifar pleaded not guilty also was released on bail, authorities said. The Justice Department also said the defendants were charged with fraud, money laundering, and breach of sanctions.

"The four defendants allegedly observed and plotted the kidnapping of an Iranian-American who criticized the autocracy of the regime and forced them to bring their potential victims to Iran," Federal Attorney Audrey Strauss told the Southern District of New York.