Man accused of being involved in plot to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer claims FBI agent tried to 'cover up the fact the agency encouraged the conspiracy'
The attorney representing one of six men indicted in last year's plot to kidnap Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer claimed that an FBI agent told an informant to lie and delete text messages in an alleged attempt to cover up the agency's actions encouraging the conspiracy.
Suspect Brandon Caserta's lawyer, Michael Hills, laid out the accusations in a court filing on Friday, asking US District Judge Robert Jonker to compel the government to produce all communications between FBI agents and a confidential informant known as 'Dan.'
The FBI in October 2020 said it thwarted the plot to kidnap Whitmer by anti-government extremists upset over her coronavirus restrictions.
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Brandon Caserta, one of the six men indicted for allegedly plotting to kidnap Michigan Gov Gretchen Whitmer, claims that an FBI agent told an informant to lie and delete text messages as part of a suspected entrapment coverup
Attorney Michael Hills provided this screenshot of an exchange between an FBI agent and an informant known as 'Dan'
The agent instructs 'Dan' to delete their communications, then tells him to lie and accuse another person named 'Trent' of being the informant
Caserta, Adam Fox, Barry Croft Jr, Ty Garbin, Caleb Franks and Daniel Harris were charged in federal court with conspiracy, which carries a maximum penalty of life in prison.
In the August 13 filing, Hills argued that the text messages between 'Dan' the informant and two FBI agents indicate that the federal agency 'was pushing their paid agent to actively recruit people into an overt act in furtherance of a conspiracy.'
The government previously refused the defense's request to furnish the requested communications, arguing that lawyers have failed to show evidence of entrapment.
Hills attached screenshots of text messages between 'Dan' and FBI's Henrik Impola, in which the agent instructed the informant to 'delete these,' purportedly referring to their texts.
According to the lawyer, Dan's FBI handler also asked him to lie to Pete Musico, a founding member of the Wolverine Watchmen militia, 'and accuse an innocent individual as being undercover federal agent spying on Mr. Musico.'
This photo combo shows from top left, Kaleb Franks, Brandon Caserta, Adam Dean Fox, and bottom left, Daniel Harris, Barry Croft, and Ty Garbin, who were described as anti-government extremists angry over Whitmer's policies to prevent spread of the coronavirus
In one text message attached to the filing, Agent Impola writes to Dan: 'Copy. Best thing to do is deny and accuse somebody like Trent.'
According to the defense attorney, Trent was on the outskirts of the militia group and was not indicted in connection with the kidnapping plot.
Hills argued that Impola's behavior, as evidenced by his exchanges, 'casts a dark shadow over the credibility of this investigation and demonstrates the need for immediate disclosure as demanded.'
Hills further asserted that FBI's informant was the 'person at the center of all activity' and that the agents pushed him 'to actively recruit and entice people to either enter a conspiratorial agreement or an overt act in support of an agreement.'
The attorney revealed that he is seeking the communications 'for the purposes of entrapment defense.'
Assistant US Attorney Nils Kessler has denied that the agents were encouraging the plot, claiming in a recent court filing the 'defendants were predisposed to join the kidnapping and explosive conspiracies, and therefore will not be able to prove entrapment.'
In this courtroom drawing, five defendants in the Whitmer kidnapping case appear in federal court in Grand Rapids, Michigan, on October 13, 2020
Caserta and the other suspects were arrested after four members of the militia group scheduled an October 7 meeting in Ypsilanti, west of Detroit, to meet an undercover FBI agent and buy explosives and other supplies, the indictment says.
Eight other men who are said to be members or associates of the Wolverine Watchmen are charged in state court with counts including providing material support for terrorist acts. Some of them are accused of taking part in the alleged plot to kidnap Whitmer and put her on 'trial,' or abandon her in the middle of Lake Michigan in a disabled boat.
Caserta, Fox, Croft, Harris and Franks are set to go on trial on October 12. Garbin awaits sentencing after pleading guilty to conspiracy.