Norwegian teenager Johannes Natland convicted in UK for Iran‑backed Swedish gang murder plot
Norwegian 19‑year‑old Johannes Natland was found guilty of conspiracy to murder by a London court after being arrested in a Huddersfield hotel in March 2025 with two pistols, a revolver and ammunition. Prosecutors said the Swedish organised‑crime group Foxtrot Network, which is supported by the Iranian government, recruited Natland through encrypted messaging apps and offered €25,000 to kill an unknown target. The gang is listed on sanctions regimes in the United Kingdom and the United States. Natland admitted possessing the weapons but denied planning the killing. Police intercepted him before any attack could be carried out, ending the plot.
Entities: Foxtrot Network · Iran · Johannes Natland · Norway · United Kingdom
Claims
What the coverage asserts, and how well corroborated each claim is across sources.
- [● 2 SOURCES] The recruitment and instructions were communicated via encrypted messaging apps such as Signal, Telegram and Snapchat. (prosecutors)
- [● 3 SOURCES] Natland was arrested in March 2025 in a hotel room in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, carrying two pistols, a revolver and ammunition. (police report)
- [● 3 SOURCES] Police intercepted Natland before he could carry out the planned murder, preventing the attack. (police operation)
- [● 3 SOURCES] Johannes Natland, 19, was convicted in the United Kingdom of conspiracy to murder. (court verdict)
- [● 3 SOURCES] Natland possessed a semi‑automatic pistol, a revolver and ammunition, but denied the conspiracy charge. (court testimony)
- [● 2 SOURCES] The Foxtrot Network is subject to sanctions by the United States and the United Kingdom because of its links to the Iranian regime. (court statements)
- [● 3 SOURCES] Natland was recruited by the Swedish organised‑crime group Foxtrot Network, which receives support from the Iranian government. (prosecutors)
- [● 3 SOURCES] The Foxtrot Network offered Natland €25,000 to carry out the murder. (prosecutors)