13 held in attempted kidnap of Michigan’s governor

Thirteen men who are members of two militia groups have been arrested and accused of separate plots to kidnap Michigan Democratic Governor Gretchen Whitmer before the Nov 3 presidential election and put her on trial, but authorities said the plot was foiled by the FBI through the use of informants.

Six were arrested on Wednesday on federal charges of conspiracy to commit kidnapping, seven others were picked up on state charges, officials said. The six could face life in prison if convicted.

The seven men were charged with state crimes, which carry penalties of two to 20 years in prison. It was not immediately clear how the two groups were coordinating their plans.

For months, Whitmer has drawn the ire of militia groups and others opposed to her restrictions aimed at curbing the spread of the coronavirus.

In an address from the US state capital of Lansing on Thursday afternoon following the arrests, she said that she “never could have imagined anything like this”.

Common enemy

“We are not one another’s enemy,” Whitmer said. “This virus is our enemy.”

But she accused President Donald Trump of being “complicit” through his rhetoric.

“Just last week, the president of the

United States stood before the American people and refused to condemn white supremacists and hate groups like these two Michigan militia groups,” the governor said.

Armed protesters took to the streets of Lansing during the early days of her coronavirus lockdown. In April, Trump tweeted “LIBERATE MICHIGAN!”

The FBI said it collected information about the kidnapping plot from informants and undercover agents. The agency paid one of the informants more than $14,000 and another $8,600, according to an affidavit released on Thursday.

Over the summer, the conspirators allegedly began training for a potential attack on Whitmer’s vacation home or the governor’s official summer residence, the affidavit said.

FBI Special Agent Richard Trask said in an affidavit accompanying the criminal complaint that one of the six arrested men had bought a stun gun for the mission last week and that the men had been planning to buy explosives on Wednesday.

Seven of the arrested men are linked to a militia group known as the Wolverine Watchmen, said Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel.

They are accused of attempting to find the home addresses of law enforcement officers to target them, making threats of violence intended to “instigate a civil war” and engaging in planning and training to attack the Michigan capitol building and kidnap government officials, including Whitmer.