Barry Croft Jr., 47, one of the ringleaders in a plot to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, was sentenced to more than 19 years in prison by a U.S. District Court judge on Wednesday.
Why it matters: Croft's co-defendant, Adam Fox, 39, a second leader of the plot to violently attack and overthrow the state government in 2020, received a prison sentence of 16 years on Tuesday.
- Both were convicted in August of conspiring to abduct and conspiring to obtain a weapon of mass destruction, and both faced possible life sentences over the convictions.
- They had been members of a far-right militia group called the Three Percenters.
Between the lines: Croft was also previously convicted of knowingly possessing an unregistered destructive device, which the Department of Justice said was in the form of a commercial firework refashioned with shrapnel to serve as a hand grenade.
- The DOJ said evidence in the trial showed that Croft and others intended to kidnap Whitmer from her vacation home near Elk Rapids, Michigan, and use destructive devices to hinder and harm the governor's security detail and responding law enforcement officers.
- "They specifically explored placing a bomb under an interstate overpass near a pedestrian boardwalk," the Justice Department said.
The big picture: So far, at least seven men have been convicted and sentenced over the plot, which was partially in response to Whitmer's COVID-19 restrictions.
- Three men were sentenced earlier this month after being found guilty of providing material support to a terrorist act over the plot, while two others were sentenced earlier this year.
- Two more men were acquitted by a jury of kidnapping conspiracy charges.
Go deeper: How the Oath Keepers were radicalized
