The chilling plot was alleged in newly unsealed court documents.
Six men have been arrested and charged with a plot to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D), the federal government revealed Thursday.
Angry at the governor’s policies to combat the spread of Covid-19, the men deemed Whitmer a “tyrant” and spent months planning to kidnap her, the government claims. They zeroed in on a plan to “use deadly force” to attack Whitmer’s vacation home, and planned to purchase additional supplies this week, FBI special agent Richard Trask wrote in an affidavit.
Six men — Adam Fox, Barry Croft, Ty Garbin, Kaleb Franks, Daniel Harris, and Brandon Caserta — are being charged with conspiracy to kidnap the governor.
The government says the conspirators were in contact with a militia group based in Michigan — training in tactics and weapons with the group, and attempting to build an explosive device with a militia group member.
Though the group is not named in the federal government’s court papers, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel identified the group as the Wolverine Watchmen, and said her office has arrested and charged seven of its members under the state’s anti-terrorism act (in addition to the federal government’s charges against the previous six men). Nessel said the charged men hoped to “instigate a civil war.”
According to Trask’s affidavit, Fox and Croft had been “discussing the violent overthrow of certain government and law-enforcement components” since at least early 2020, asserting that they believed state governments were violating the Constitution.
In June, Fox focused his attention on Gov. Whitmer, calling her a “tyrant bitch” and livestreaming a video “in which he complained about the judicial system and the State of Michigan controlling the opening of gyms,” the government claims.
“Snatch and grab, man. Grab the fuckin’ Governor. Just grab the bitch,” Fox said in a July conversation recorded by the FBI.
Harris also suggested in an encrypted group chat to “have one person go to her house, knock on the door, and when she answers it just cap her,” but the group settled on kidnapping, the government says.
Fox allegedly expressed hope that the plot would inspire similar overthrows of governors in other states. “I can see several states takin’ their fuckin’ tyrants. Everybody takes their tyrants,” he said, according to the government.
Trask’s affidavit goes on to give several details of the alleged conspiracy that make it seem like it wasn’t just empty talk — the planning had advanced quite far. The government claims:
This week, investigators made their move. According to Robert Snell of the Detroit News, the FBI raided a Michigan home Wednesday night, and the six men accused in the federal complaint were arrested.
On Thursday, Nessel said her office has filed state charges against seven of the militia group’s members, all of whom are now in custody, as well. She charged them under the state’s anti-terrorism act.
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Author: Andrew Prokop
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