Former Texas used-car salesman gets 25 years in prison for plot to kill Saudi envoy

NEW YORK — A federal judge in New York has sentenced a Texas man to 25 years in prison for plotting to kill Saudi Arabia’s ambassador to the United States.

Manssor Arbabsiar was sentenced Thursday in Manhattan. Before he was arrested in 2011, 58-year-old ran used-car dealerships in Corpus Christi.

Arbabsiar pleaded guilty to the plot last year. Authorities say he went to Mexico at the direction of the Iranian military in 2011 to arrange the assassination attempt. The plot never went any further.

Prosecutors had sought the 25-year sentence.

Defense attorneys say he suffers from a mental disorder that clouded his judgment. They argued the sentence should be no more than 10 years.

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