FBI agents reportedly raided a home while investigating threats against lawyers and a judge participating in a trial over a conspiracy to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.
The raid, which took place last Friday, is believed to be part of an FBI effort to investigate death threats against Chief U.S. District Judge Robert Jonker and defense lawyers Josh Blanchard and Christopher Gibbons, the Detroit News reported Tuesday. The report said there have been no arrests since the raid.
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“FBI Detroit will work closely with other FBI field offices and with our law enforcement partners across the country to identify the source of any threat made to anyone involved with the ongoing prosecution in Grand Rapids,” FBI spokeswoman Mara Schneider said in a statement. “Individuals found responsible for making threats in violation of state and/or federal law will be referred for prosecution in the appropriate jurisdiction.”
Many details about the raid, including the reason for it, the specific threat being investigated, and the resident of the home, remain unclear, according to the report. The raid took place in a Hazel Park home, but the exact location is unknown.
The trial is currently taking place in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Michigan. Barry Croft, 46, Adam Fox, 38, Daniel Harris, 24, and Brandon Caserta, 33, are on trial over charges brought against them in 2020 in a conspiracy to kidnap Whitmer. If convicted, they could face up to life in prison. Blanchard represents Croft, and Gibbons represents Fox.
Prosecutors in the case are expected to rest their case Wednesday, according to WXYZ. They have presented the jury with social media posts and other key evidence, such as the testimony of Ty Garbin, 26, another man charged in the plot.
“Which governor is going to end up dragged off and hung for treason first?“ defendant Croft allegedly wrote in a social media post, per the Guardian. “It’s really a spin the bottle match at this point and I’m sure a few mayors are in the running!!! God bless the constitutional republic!!!“
Lawyers for the defendants have argued that their clients were merely “big talkers” and had no real intention of carrying out the plan. They also suggested the FBI agents entrapped them, WXYZ reported.
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Kaleb Franks, 27, also charged in the plot, and Garbin pleaded guilty to the charges against them. Garbin delivered testimony last week against the four alleged co-conspirators currently standing trial and insisted there was “no question” they engaged in a plot to kidnap Whitmer. Franks also delivered testimony against the defendants and insisted the plot was authentic.
The FBI monitored the team and had undercover agents interacting with the defendants before arrests were made. The defendants allegedly partook in multiple training exercises to kidnap the governor, according to a plea agreement for Franks. They also allegedly surveilled Whitmer’s vacation home and attempted to purchase explosives, the Detroit Free Press reported.
