Key facts
- Johannes Natland, 19, convicted of conspiracy to murder in the UK.
- Arrested in Huddersfield with two firearms and 19 rounds of ammunition.
- Recruited by Swedish Foxtrot Network, allegedly linked to Iran.
- Foxtrot Network uses teenage killers in a 'violence-as-a-service' model.
- Natland claimed he planned to 'shoot himself in the foot' to avoid the assassination.
- The intended victim has never been identified.
A Norwegian teenager has been found guilty of travelling to England to carry out a killing ordered by an international crime gang linked to Iran. Johannes Kongsnes Natland, 19, was arrested in a hotel room in Huddersfield with two guns and ammunition after agreeing to shoot an unknown person for €25,000 (£21,500).
A jury at the Old Bailey found him guilty of conspiracy to murder following a retrial. Natland was recruited by the Foxtrot Network, a Swedish organised crime group with links to the Iranian government. He told jurors he initially agreed to the plot for money to pay for drugs, believing it was a "joke" or "scam", and later planned to "shoot himself in the foot" to avoid carrying out the assassination.
Evidence presented included text messages where Natland described the mission as "crazy" and "cool to kill someone". Armed police found a semi-automatic pistol, a revolver, and 19 rounds of ammunition in his hotel room. Prosecutors described Natland as a "troubled but dangerous young man" who agreed to kill in a foreign country for money. He began taking drugs at 13 and was recruited into the Foxtrot Network while in a care home. Natland flew into Manchester on March 17, travelled to Huddersfield, and was arrested the following day. He was reportedly controlled by a figure known as "Agent 47".