Plot to assassinate Padmé Amidala Prior to the Clone Wars , at the height of the Separatist Crisis ; the Confederacy of Independent Systems and the Trade Federation plotted to assassinate Senator Padmé Amidala of Naboo . Amidala , a leading opponent of the Military Creation Act that proposed the creation of an army for the Galactic Republic , was targeted when she arrived on Coruscant for a vote on the measure as part of Darth Sidious ' plot to ensure the passing of the legislation . The attempt was carried out by Zam Wesell , a partner of bounty hunter Jango Fett who himself following orders from Count Dooku , leader of the Confederacy of Independent Systems so that it could gain the backing of Nute Gunray and the Trade Federation under the condition that Amidala was killed . The attempt failed , though it claimed the life of some of Amidala ' s associates . As a result of the attempt , the Jedi High Council assigned Jedi Knight Obi - Wan Kenobi and his Padawan , Anakin Skywalker , to protect the senator . Wesell attempted another assassination later that evening , but it was foiled by the Jedi , who chased Wesell on Coruscant before she was killed by Fett ; the bounty hunter killed her to prevent her from revealing their secrets . This set in motion an investigation that led Kenobi to Kamino , where he discovered a clone army that had been secretly created for the Republic . This army became the Grand Army of the Republic and was used during the Battle of Geonosis , which sparked the Clone Wars . The first attempt . The assassination did not claim the life of Senator Amidala thanks to the foresight of Captain Gregar Typho , Amidala ' s head of security . He had Amidala replaced by her handmaiden Cordé , while Amidala flew in a N - 1 starfighter . A massive explosion engineered by Wesell took the lives of Cordé and six members of the Royal Naboo Security Forces . In the wake of the attack , Supreme Chancellor Palpatine requested that the Jedi High Council place Senator Amidala under the protection of Jedi Master Obi - Wan Kenobi . Kenobi and his Padawan Anakin Skywalker were assigned for the task . Kenobi and Skywalker ' s protection prevented a second assassination attempt from succeeding . The second attack . Following the first failed attempt , Wesell was sent by Fett to end the life of Amidala a second time . Fett , thinking that a more subtle attempt would be more desirable , gave Wesell two kouhun s , a type of arthropod with a venom capable of easily killing adult Humans . Wesell placed the kouhuns in her ASN courier droid and sent it to place the kouhuns in Amidala ' s bedroom . Obi - Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker , from outside the bedroom , sensed the danger , however , and Skywalker burst into the room and killed the kouhuns . The two Jedi then pursued Wesell by airspeeder through the Coruscant skylane s . After catching up with the bounty hunter and literally disarming her , the two took Wesell outside , where Fett was forced to kill her with a toxic saberdart , just as she was about to reveal her employer ' s identity to the Jedi . Aftermath . The saberdart proved to be Jango Fett ' s undoing ; Kenobi brought the dart to his friend Dexter Jettster , whose knowledge of the dart ' s origins led Kenobi to the mysterious planet of Kamino . On Kamino , Obi - Wan discovered Fett and pursued him to the planet Geonosis , where Obi - Wan discovered that the Confederacy of Independent Systems was constructing an enormous droid army . Fett was later killed on Geonosis by Mace Windu just prior to the Clone Wars .