Man charged in plot to kidnap Michigan governor was previously pardoned on weapons charge
- Barry Croft Jnr was pardoned on a series of criminal charges dealt to him in the mid-1990s
- Croft was among a dozen others charged in connection with the kidnapping plot
A Delaware man charged for his role in a plot to kidnap the Michigan governor was previously pardoned on a weapons charge.
Delaware Governor John Carney last year signed off on a pardon for Barry Croft Jnr, who was arrested and charged on October 14 in federal court with conspiring to kidnap Governor Gretchen Whitmer.
According to documents obtained by Delaware Online/The News Journal, the 44-year-old suspect was pardoned on a series of criminal charges dealt to him in the mid-1990s, including possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, assault and burglary.
He was also convicted on charges of conspiracy, receiving stolen property and disorderly conduct, according to the pardon document.
Carney in a statement confirming the pardon called the federal charges raised against Croft “disturbing” and said everyone involved with the plot should be “prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”
“This is also another warning sign about the growing threat of violence and radicalisation in our politics,” added Carney, who is a democrat.
Croft’s pardon was recommended by the Delaware Board of Pardons and was not opposed by the Delaware Department of Justice.