A right-wing militia wants to overthrow the government in the US state of Michigan and kidnap Governor Whitmer. But the FBI foils the plan and a jury finds two men from the group guilty. You face a long prison sentence.
Two members of a far-right militia were convicted on Tuesday of the planned kidnapping of Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer. After eight hours of deliberation, a federal jury found the defendants guilty of conspiracy to kidnap and use a weapon of mass destruction.
The penalty has yet to be determined. Both convicts face life imprisonment. The verdict confirmed that this conspiracy was "very real and very dangerous," said trial observer Andrew Birge, appointed by the US government, in a statement. In April, two other men charged with plotting to kidnap Whitmer were acquitted.
In October 2020, a month before the US presidential election, a total of 14 suspected extremists were arrested in connection with the planned kidnapping. They are said to have planned to kidnap the Democratic governor in order to start a "civil war". According to the prosecutor, the suspects observed Whitmer's holiday home and photographed a nearby bridge that was to be blown up as a diversionary maneuver.
Whitmer, a harsh critic of ex-President Donald Trump, was attacked by right-wing groups at the time because of her tough measures in the fight against the corona pandemic. Protests by some heavily armed activists in Michigan's capital Lansing caused a nationwide sensation. Trump had called for the protests to "liberate" Michigan and the states of Minnesota and Virginia, which are also governed democratically. He had also repeatedly verbally attacked Whitmer.
