The U.S. Department of Justice has charged Asif Merchant, a Pakistani national with ties to the Iranian government, for plotting to assassinate former American President Donald Trump and other U.S. leaders.

Mr Merchant, 46, who is now in custody, is accused of travelling to New York City and plotting with a hitman to plan the assassinations of Mr Trump and other political figures in America, scheduled for late August or early September, according to charges filed by federal prosecutors in Brooklyn, New York.

According to court documents released on Tuesday, this development has led to heightened security measures for Mr Trump and other U.S. leaders.

Mr Merchant was apprehended on July 12 while preparing to leave the U.S. shortly after he met with individuals he believed to be hitmen but were, in fact, undercover law enforcement agents. 

The news came after FBI intelligence revealed that the Iranian government was plotting the assassination of Mr Trump in retaliation for the killing of its general Qassim Suleimani in 2021. Iran, however, denied allegations it is plotting to assassinate Mr Trump.

The Republican presidential nominee narrowly escaped being assassinated when Thomas Matthew Crooks, a 20-year-old from Pennsylvania, fired shots during a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. 

However, no evidence has linked Mr Merchant to an earlier failed assassination attempt on Mr Trump.