Six men have been arrested for allegedly plotting to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.
Daniel Harris, Ty Garbin, Kaleb Franks, Adam Fox, and Brandon Caserta were indicted on Wednesday on federal kidnapping conspiracy charges; all of the men pleaded not guilty in proceedings on Thursday, CNN reports. The men have been in custody since being arrested in October when the police took down their scheme.
Josh Blanchard, an attorney for Barry Croft, said his client has not been arraigned yet. Croft also was indicted in the case. The indictment details how between June 6 and October 7, the men conspired to “unlawfully seize, kidnap, abduct and carry away, and hold for ransom and reward” Whitmer.
According to authorities, the men plotted to kidnap the Democrat governor from a vacation home and set explosives off on a bridge to delay police from catching them. Police were able to foil their plan by arresting the men before they could pull it off. The six men are just one group that has been charged in the case since October. The state charged another group of eight people. Seven of those men were a part of or affiliated with the group “Wolverine Watchmen,” a Michigan-based militia group.
The FBI caught to the men’s plans back in early 2020 through a social media group, CNN reports via a federal complaint. The FBI then planted confidential informants to travel to Dublin, Ohio on June 6 for a meeting with Croft, Fox, and about 13 others, the outlet reports.
Their motive for the kidnapping reportedly stems from the restrictions Whitmer imposed following the outbreak of the coronavirus.
