CAMBRIA, Wis. — A group of people arrested for plotting to kidnap the governor of Michigan took part in a combat training this summer in Columbia County.
Columbia County Sheriff Roger Brandner said the FBI notified his department about the Wisconsin connection on Thursday and Friday. Local authorities were unaware of the investigation until 13 people were charged in connection to the kidnapping plot on Thursday.
Six people face federal charges and seven others, associated with the militia group “Wolverine Watchmen” were charged by the state of Michigan. The group planned to kidnap Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and bring her to a “secure location” in Wisconsin and put her on “trial” for treason. The complaint did not list where that location would be.
The complaint also said the group took part in combat training exercises in Cambria, Wis. in July. Brandner said the training actually took place on a rural two acre residence near Cambria, in the town of Courtland. The homeowner is an acquaintance of the suspects, Brandner said.
The group spent several days in Columbia County. Members participated in firearms training and attempted to make an explosive device while on the property, the complaint said.
Brandner said his office is unaware of any active militia activity in the county.
He said he is “concerned, not shocked” at the plot given the extreme viewpoints of people living in the Midwest.
The Columbia County Sheriff’s Office is not part of the FBI investigation, Brandner said. Court documents indicate the government used a confidential informant and undercover agents in the investigation.
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