Norwegian Teen Found Guilty in UK Murder Plot Tied to Iran-Linked Group

Johannes Natland, 19, was recruited online by the Foxtrot Network, a crime group sanctioned ​by both the UK and the United States, the prosecution said.

A selfie that Johannes Natland took of himself next to a hotel bed covered with British money, in Huddersfield, England, on March 19, 2025. Metropolitan Police

A Norwegian teenager was found guilty on Wednesday of conspiracy to commit murder of an unknown person in ​the UK after being recruited by a Swedish ‌criminal gang that prosecutors said was being used by the Iranian government.

Johannes Natland, now 19, was arrested in a hotel room in ​Huddersfield, in the northern England county of West Yorkshire, in March 2025 with ​two firearms and ammunition in his possession.

Natland, who had no previous convictions, ⁠was recruited online by the Foxtrot Network, a crime group linked to Iran and sanctioned ​by both the UK and the United States, the prosecution said.

Natland admitted to possessing two pistols and ammunition, but denied conspiracy to murder, saying ​he did not intend to carry out the plan.

Following ​a retrial at London’s Old Bailey court, Natland was found guilty of ‌conspiracy ⁠to murder. A jury at his initial trial in June could not reach a verdict on that charge.

Natland is the latest youth to stand trial in the UK and elsewhere ​over serious ​criminal acts ⁠carried out after being recruited online for money, often as an unwitting proxy for a ​foreign state.

Prosecutor Alistair Richardson told jurors that Natland ​was ⁠recruited by the Foxtrot Network, sometimes known as “the Foxes,” after someone using the name “Agent 47” hired him as an assassin with 25,000 euros ($28,500) “in the pot” to pay ⁠for ​it.

‘A Calculated Plan’

Natland “neither knew, nor cared who he ​was to kill,” Richardson said, adding that “to him, this was all about the money.”

The teenager flew into Manchester Airport on an emergency passport from his hometown of Stavanger on 17 March, 2025, just two days before the planned hit.

The prosecution said a recruiter known as “Junger,” who was part of the online network, said of Natland’s home town, “Stavanger is a warrior city ha-ha. We are getting assassin after assassin from there haha.”

Natland was given instructions on where to collect the weapons and ammunition, hidden in woodlands in Huddersfield, according to the prosecution.

The intended target has never been identified, the court was told.

Frank Ferguson, head of the Special Crime and Counter Terrorism Division, said Norland was part of “a calculated plan to kill for money.”

“This case shows how organised crime networks operate across borders and exploit young people to carry out serious violence,” Ferguson said.

Evidence against him came from phone records as well as CCTV footage and witness testimony, which Ferguson said “left no doubt that Natland intended to carry out this crime.”

Trans-Atlantic Sanctions

Authorities say the Foxtrot Network was founded in 2021 and is engaged in drug smuggling and violent crimes.

The United States sanctioned the group in March 2025, along with its fugitive leader, Rawa Majid, saying the organization is involved in arms trafficking and “contributes to rising violence in Northern Europe, including shootings, contract killings, and assaults.”

The British government imposed the same sanction in August 2025.

“The Iranian regime uses criminal gangs across the world to threaten people,” the British Foreign Office said at the time. “The UK has targeted this criminal network and its leader, Rawa Majid, due to their involvement in violence against Jewish and Israeli targets in Europe on behalf of the Iranian regime. The UK will not tolerate these threats.”

Authorities say the group advertises its violent assignments, which can be cross-border, in group chats on apps including Snapchat, Telegram, and Signal.

The Crown Prosecution Service said the network often enlists very young perpetrators with whom they have no direct link.

‘A Crazy Mission’

In one exchange found on Natland’s phone, the “Agent47” contact described the location of the assignment as, “Great Britain. As easy as can be.”

Natland told his girlfriend he was “going on a crazy mission” before he left Norway for the UK. He said he was going to kill someone, and life would be “wonderful.”

After collecting the weapons, he messaged her to say “in the bag is bang” and sent her a selfie holding a firearm, which he captioned “soon it will happen.”

CCTV footage showed Natland collecting the weapons and later buying gloves matching those seen in his own videos handling the guns.

The final message sent to the teenager before his arrest read, “We have much to do tomorrow.”

A 17-year-old has also been convicted and sentenced to 14 years following a trial in Norway in relation to his role in recruiting Natland to the plot.

Another 16-year-old in Norway is awaiting trial for his alleged role in the conspiracy.

Natland will be sentenced at the Old Bailey in October.