Anti-lockdown protesters demonstrate from their vehicles as they call for Gov. Ralph Northam to "reopen Virginia" amid the COVID-19 pandemic, near the statehouse in Richmond, Va., on April 22. File Photo by Kevin Dietsch/UPI |
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The militia members have not been charged with plotting against Northam, who came under some criticism in Virginia for his efforts to contain the pandemic.
Northam has been Virginia's Democratic governor since 2018.
Suspect Adam Fox is seen in a booking photo after his arrest on charges that he and other militia members plotted to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. Photo via Kent County Sheriff's Office/UPI
Defendants Adam Fox, Ty Garbin, Kaleb Franks, Daniel Harris and Brandon Caserta entered the courtroom in shackles for Tuesday's detention hearing.
Trask identified the 37-year-old Fox as the group's ringleader, saying he ordered surveillance at Whitmer's vacation home and at one point suggested taking the governor out on a boat and leaving her in a lake.
He also testified that some members of the "Wolverine Watchmen" militia attended a Second Amendment rally at the Michigan State Capitol in Lansing in June, where they allegedly attempted to recruit members from outside their region.
Some experts say militias like the one involved in Whitmer's case are devoted to a so-called "alt-right constitution," which they say is a toxic mix of constitutional falsehoods and half-truths.