GRAND RAPIDS, MI (WKZO AM/FM) – A federal jury in Grand Rapids has convicted two men charged with plotting to kidnap Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer over of anger over her handling of the pandemic.
The verdict against Adam Fox and Barry Croft Jr. was announced late Tuesday morning. Deliberations began Monday.
The two men were acquitted in their first trial, as the jury deadlocked on charges against them.
Prosecutors maintained that Fox, Croft, and four other militia members plotted to kidnap the governor from her vacation home out of anger over her lockdown orders and mask mandates.
Whitmer issued the following statement after a guilty verdict was reached in the kidnapping trial:
“I want to thank the prosecutors and law enforcement officers for their hard work and my family, friends, and staff for their support.
“Today’s verdicts prove that violence and threats have no place in our politics and those who seek to divide us will be held accountable. They will not succeed.
“But we must also take a hard look at the status of our politics. Plots against public officials and threats to the FBI are a disturbing extension of radicalized domestic terrorism that festers in our nation, threatening the very foundation of our republic.”
“I ran for office because I love my fellow Michiganders and my home state with all my heart. I always will. I cannot—I will not—let extremists get in the way of the work we do. They will never break my unwavering faith in the goodness and decency of our people.
“I will stay focused on getting things done for the people of Michigan.”
