Gretchen Whitmer Kidnapping Co-Conspirator Sentenced To Nearly 20 Years In Prison

Topline

A federal judge sentenced a leader of the failed plot to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to 19 years and seven months in prison on Wednesday, the longest sentence imposed in the investigation into the 2020 domestic terror conspiracy that led to the arrest of 14 men, many of whom were members of a far-right militia group.

Key Facts

Michigan-based Judge Robert Jonker sentenced Barry Croft Jr., 47, a Delaware truck driver, on Wednesday, following his conviction in August for kidnapping conspiracy, conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction and possessing an unregistered explosive.

FBI agents observed Croft scouting Whitmer’s vacation home in northern Michigan, according to prosecutors, who compared his influence over the plan and his co-conspirators to that of an ISIS spiritual leader.

Croft, a member of the anti-government group known as the Three Percenters, and his co-conspirators designed the kidnapping as a way to rally other extremists to overthrow the government, prosecutors said.

Contra

Prosecutors requested a life sentence, which Jonker called unnecessary. Croft’s lawyer asked the judge for a shorter sentence, arguing his client suffered from mental illness and drug abuse issues and could “return to live a productive, law-abiding life” if given “the right tools,” The New York Times reported, citing attorney Joshua Blanchard’s sentencing memo.

Chief Critic

“[Croft] said, ‘I can’t wait for war to come to this land,’ and meant it. Only a life sentence can adequately address Croft’s crimes and deter him and others from pursuing such apocalyptic visions for our country,” prosecutors wrote in their sentencing memo.

Key Background

Croft’s sentence comes a day after his co-conspirator, Adam Fox, was sentenced to 16 years in prison for his role in the kidnapping scheme. Two other men involved in the plot were sentenced to 30 months and four years in prison, three others were convicted in state court and five additional suspects are awaiting trial. The plan to kidnap and possibly assassinate Whitmer came at the tail end of former President Donald Trump’s four years in office, during his tense re-election campaign that emboldened many extremists to come out of the shadows and engage in political violence. Some suspects—many of whom were members of a militia group called the Wolverine Watchmen—also complained about Whitmer’s coronavirus mitigation measures, in some cases calling her a “tyrant.” The FBI arrested Croft, along with 13 others in October 2020, following an undercover mission in which they were embedded among the suspects. Prosecutors described Croft as a key participant in the plot, helping to recruit co-conspirators like Fox and providing “inspiration and direction” to the co-conspirators (defense attorneys said Croft, who pleaded not guilty, wasn’t a member of the Wolverine Watchmen). Whitmer, who was never harmed in the plot, blamed Trump for giving “comfort to those who spread fear and hatred and division” following the arrests.

Further Reading

New Trial Ordered In Whitmer Kidnapping Case (Forbes)

Two Men Convicted In Attempted Kidnapping Of Michigan Governor Whitmer (Forbes)

6 Men Charged In Months-Long Violent Plot To Kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (Forbes)