Norwegian Teen Hired by Iran-Backed Gang Tried to Carry Out Contract Killing in UK

[Financial News] A Norwegian teenager who attempted a killing in the UK on behalf of an Iran-backed criminal organization has been handed a lengthy prison sentence.
According to the British daily The Guardian on the 17th (local time), Woolwich Crown Court on the outskirts of London sentenced 19-year-old Norwegian Johannes Kongsnes Natland to 20 years in prison for conspiracy to murder on the 16th (local time). 
Natland, a talented footballer, traveled from Norway to the UK in March last year after agreeing to receive 25,000 euros (37 million won) in exchange for killing an unidentified target. He was arrested by police two days before the planned crime.
Natland was recruited by another teenager known as “Generalen.” The person known as “Generalen” was linked to the Swedish gang Foxtrot, which is reportedly known for recruiting teenagers, mainly by offering them money, to carry out killings and attacks.
Recruited by Foxtrot, Natland arrived in Manchester with a temporary passport, following instructions from a member of the organization who went by the nickname “Agent 47.” He then traveled to Huddersfield in northern England, checked into a hotel, and received firearms, ammunition and £2,000 in cash (3.56 million won).
While staying at the hotel, he spread the firearms and cash across the bed and took a selfie. He also bragged to his girlfriend, “I got the guns.” British armed police raided Natland and arrested him two days before he was due to carry out the crime. Police seized a semi-automatic pistol, a revolver, 12 live rounds and gloves from him.
Natland admitted possessing the firearms and ammunition, but told investigators that he had tried to shoot himself in the foot to escape the “predicament” he was in.
However, after the relevant evidence came to light, he told the court, “I wasn’t an international assassin. I thought people saw me as that kind of person and expected me to act like one. But I knew I wasn’t that kind of person.”
The defense lawyer pleaded for leniency, saying Natland had been “a young, popular and successful student and athlete” before he lost his way after becoming addicted to drugs.
The judge, however, imposed a heavy sentence, saying, “You had numerous opportunities to get yourself out of that situation, yet you agreed to take on the role of an ‘enforcer’ and went ahead with it.”
The judge noted, “Although no one was shot dead or physically injured, I am certain that you would have acted as agreed if the police had not stopped the plan.”


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