Plot To Maim Or Kill Myanmar's U.N. Ambassador In Westchester

WESTCHESTER COUNTY, NY — Two Myanmar citizens are accused of conspiring to oust Myanmar’s ambassador to the United Nations, who opposes the military junta that seized power earlier this year, by injuring — or even killing — him.

They were planning to attack him in Westchester County, where the ambassador lives, the Associated Press reported.

Myanmar's military again overthrew the country's civilian government in February. The country's U.N. ambassador, Kyaw Moe Tun, staunchly opposed the move and called for a strong reaction from the international community.

Myanmar's military has tried to remove Tun from his post, but the 193-member General Assembly is responsible for accrediting diplomats and has not taken action at the military's urging, the AP said.

Phyo Hein Htut and Ye Hein Zaw were hired to attack Tun by a Thailand arms dealer who sells weapons to the Myanmar military, U.S. Attorney Audrey Strauss said in a release Friday.

"Time was of the essence when we received information about a threat to Myanmar’s Ambassador to the United Nations," said FBI Acting Assistant Director Jacqueline Maguire. "I would like to thank our Westchester Safe Streets Task Force and each of our partner law enforcement agencies that worked quickly and diligently to track down the men allegedly hired in this plot to harm and potentially kill a foreign diplomat on U.S. soil."

According to the criminal complaint, the conspirators set $4,000 as an advance payment on the plot to attack the Ambassador. Later, during a recorded phone conversation with Zaw, Htut discussed how the planned attackers would require an additional $1,000 to conduct the attack on the ambassador in Westchester County, and for an additional payment the attackers could, in substance, “finish off” the ambassador.

Htut, 28, and Zaw, 20, were each charged with conspiracy to assault and make a violent attack upon a foreign official, which carries a maximum sentence upon conviction of five years in prison.

Strauss praised the work of the FBI’s Westchester Safe Streets Task Force, which comprises special agents and task force officers from the FBI, NYPD, United States Probation Office, New York State Police, New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision, Westchester County Department of Public Safety, Westchester County District Attorney’s Office, Putnam County Sheriff’s Office, and the police departments of Yonkers, Mount Vernon, New Rochelle, Greenburgh, White Plains, Peekskill, Ramapo, and Clarkstown.

She also thanked the Pelham Manor Police Department and the U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service for their assistance in the investigation.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.