GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – Two defendants accused of plotting to kidnap Michigan Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer in 2020 were acquitted in federal court Friday during a trial in which the FBI was accused of political entrapment and egregious misconduct.
Daniel Harris and Brandon Caserta were found not guilty on the charge of conspiracy to kidnap Whitmer, reported FOX 2 Detroit.
The charges against Barry Croft and Adam Fox ended with mistrials as jurors were unable to reach a verdict on the allegations against them.
A fifth man charged in the alleged plot previously pleaded guilty.
Prosecutors claimed the plot was motivated by fury at Whitmer’s overbearing COVID-19 restrictions during the early stages of the pandemic, The Guardian reported.
However, defense attorneys argued the case against Harris and Caserta was nothing more than a partisan hit job that concluded with arrests just prior to the closely contested 2020 election in Michigan.
The men were charged as a result of a sting operation organized by former FBI Agent Richard Trask. The investigation along with the case agent were subsequently shrouded in doubt.
Trask’s credibility during the investigation was highly questionable after profane anti-Trump rants were discovered on his personal Facebook account, reported The Western Journal.
The overtly partisan agent attacked former President Donald Trump as a “douchebag” and voiced contempt for Americans who supported him.
Trask would later be fired by the FBI after being charged with felony domestic violence. He was accused of attacking his wife after the couple attended a hotel party where people exchanged partners to engage in sex.
His wife sustained bloody cuts on the right side of her head as well as “blood all over (her) chest, clothing arms and hand,” and “severe” bruises on her neck and throat, according to authorities.
In December, Trask pleaded no contest to brutalizing his wife, The Detroit News reported.
