Norwegian teen sentenced to 20 years for plotting UK murder tied to Iran-linked gang

A Norwegian teenager, Johannes Kongsnes Natland, 19, was sentenced to 20 years in prison for traveling to the UK to carry out a contract killing for the Foxtrot Network, a Swedish organized crime group linked to Iran. He was arrested in Huddersfield with two guns and ammunition. The intended target was never identified. The case highlights international crime networks and their connections to state actors.

A Norwegian teenager, Johannes Kongsnes Natland, 19, was sentenced Friday to 20 years in prison for traveling to Britain to carry out a contract killing on behalf of an international crime gang linked to Iran. Natland was convicted in July of conspiracy to murder for agreeing to shoot an unknown target for 25,000 euros ($28,100). He was arrested at a hotel in Huddersfield, northern England, with two guns and ammunition two days after arriving in the UK. The gang, known as the Foxtrot Network, has links to the Iranian government, according to counterterrorism officers from London's Metropolitan Police. Natland admitted possessing the firearms but claimed he did not want to go through with the plan. The judge noted messages showed "not only participation but at points excitement." The intended target was never identified.