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Trial of Whitmer kidnap plotters postponed 7 months

Published  February 11, 2021 6:51am EST
Whitmer Kidnapping Plot
Associated Press

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - A trial for five men accused of planning to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has been postponed for seven months to give defense lawyers more time to receive and analyze evidence, a federal judge said Wednesday.

The March 23 trial has been moved to Oct. 12 in federal court in Grand Rapids.

The FBI in October said it broke up a plot to kidnap Whitmer, a Democrat, by anti-government extremists upset over her coronavirus restrictions. Six people were charged in federal court while eight others were charged in state court with aiding them.

One of the six, Ty Garbin, pleaded guilty in January and said he would cooperate with prosecutors.

RELATED: Ty Garbin, suspect in Whitmer kidnap plot, agrees to guilty plea and will 'fully cooperate'

Garbin said he hosted training at his property near Luther, Michigan, constructing a "shoot house" to resemble Whitmer’s vacation home in Antrim County and "assaulting it with firearms."

The other defendants are Adam Fox, Barry Croft Jr., Kaleb Franks, Daniel Harris and Brandon Caserta.