WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senators Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), Maggie Hassan (D-NH), Joni Ernst (R-IA), and Jim Banks (R-IN) introduced bipartisan legislation to increase criminal penalties for individuals who commit, or attempt to commit, violent crimes in the United States on behalf of foreign adversaries. The DETERRENCE Act would both hold offenders accountable and deter criminals, including criminal organizations, from taking money from foreign adversaries in exchange for committing crimes on American soil.
“If you commit crimes in America on behalf of foreign adversaries, you must face serious consequences,” said Senator Slotkin. “The bipartisan Deterrence Act helps strengthen penalties for these crimes and sends a clear message about how seriously we take our national security and how we will hold accountable those who commit crimes against our nation.”
“Foreign adversaries are working with gangs and criminals in the United States to try to kill people on our soil, which is a national security risk,” said Senator Hassan. “This bipartisan legislation will crack down on criminals who commit violence on behalf of a foreign government. I urge my colleagues in Congress to quickly take up and pass this legislation and send a clear message to our foreign adversaries that they will face particularly serious consequences if they expand their criminal activity to American soil.”
“We cannot allow foreign adversaries, like Iran, to fund crimes against Americans on our own soil,” said Senator Ernst. “Criminals are on notice, anyone helping to carry out Tehran’s malign ‘death to America’ mission will face severe consequences. The DETERRENCE Act is another peace through strength action that will make bad actors think twice before targeting our citizens.”
Under the DETERRENCE Act, which unanimously passed the U.S. Senate last year, criminals working for foreign adversaries can be sentenced to longer prison sentences. The bill specifically increases criminal penalties for the following federal crimes when the crimes are committed under U.S. jurisdiction on behalf of foreign governments:
- Engaging in a murder-for-hire scheme
- Murdering or attempting to murder certain federal officials, including the President
- Murdering or attempting to murder certain former federal officials, or their families, because of their official actions
- Assaulting certain former federal officials, or their families, because of their official actions
- Kidnapping or attempted kidnapping
- Threats of violence using a dangerous weapon against certain current and former federal officials, as well as their families, because of their official actions
- Stalking
This legislation follows reports that foreign adversaries are increasingly turning to criminals in America to commit violent crimes against their critics, including those who reside in the United States. Just recently, two Eastern European organized crime leaders were convicted of murder-for-hire targeting a U.S. based journalist on behalf of the Iranian government. Additionally, the Department of Justice has detailed how Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) allegedly tasked an Iranian asset with creating a plan to assassinate President Trump.
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