Three ordered to stand trial in plot to kidnap Gov. Whitmer

LANSING, Mich. (WILX) - Three men have been ordered to stand trial in a plot to kidnap Democratic Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer over her coronavirus restrictions.

In a preliminary hearing on Monday, Jackson County District Court Judge Michael Klaeren ruled there was enough evidence and bound over Paul Bellar, Joe Morrison, and Pete Musico to circuit court. The three are accused of aiding six other men who are charged in federal court with conspiring to kidnap and harm Gov. Whitmer.

The men will not face charges of false report or threat of terrorism. Judge Klaeren dismissed the charge against Morrison and Musico, and declined a request by prosecutors to add it to the charges against Bellar.

Pete Musico, 42, and Joseph Morrison, 42, who live together in Munith, will now go on trial for the following charges:

Gang Membership, a 20-year felony that may be served as a consecutive sentence
Providing Material Support for Terrorist Acts
Carrying or Possessing a Firearm During the Commission of a Felony
Felony Firearm, a two-year mandatory prison sentence

Paul Bellar, 21, of Milford, will stand trial for:

Providing material support for terrorist acts – a 20-year felony and/or $20,000 fine
Gang membership – a 20-year felony, which may be served as a consecutive sentence; and Carrying or possessing a firearm during the commission of a felony.
Felony firearm – a two-year mandatory prison sentence to be served consecutively.

Bellar. who remains jailed on a $150,000 bond, was hoping to have that lowered which Judge Klaeren addressed.

“I think you may be the loosest cannon” of the three defendants, Judge Klaeren said. “You’re the youngest of the defendants. You certainly have no money. To an extent you’ve been defanged, so I’m not going to raise the bond.”

In a statement, Attorney General Dana Nessel said “We must send a clear message that those who seek to do violence against our institutions of democracy and our elected representatives are not patriots, they are criminals,” said Nessel. She added that her office would “explore all options for reconsideration of the charge moving forward.”

Judge Klaeren called the three men “erratic” and stated there is reason to believe a successful kidnapping of Whitmer would “result in injury or death or the commission of other violent crimes.” Klaeren cited the alleged scheme of at least seven training sessions, and “repeatedly exposing their expertise to others,” as essential in finding the gang membership and material support of terrorism charges were reasonable.

“Even something stupid can be a plan,” said Judge Klaeren.

Nessel’s office equated the mens’ armed participation in a storming of the Michigan Capitol in Lansing on April 30 to the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol.

The defense disagreed, arguing that carrying guns in the Capitol is not illegal, and entry was only possible after passing a COVID-19 questionnaire. According to earlier testimony, signs were not permitted inside the Capitol on April 30 but open carry guns were.

“To compare that to what happened on Jan. 6 is highly improper,” said Kareem Johnson, Musico’s attorney. “How it happened in Michigan is how it’s supposed to happen - you stay in publicly accessible areas, you comply with law enforcement, and you express your grievances.”

Nicholas Somberg, an attorney for Morrison, stated his client was not only not a driver of any plot against Whitmer but he was specifically excluded from any of the encrypted group chats.

“There’s just nothing there,” Somberg said.

Johnson argued Musico was not taken seriously by the rest of the group and compared him to a fan at a Detroit Lions game who second-guesses the coaching staff but gets ignored.

Earlier this month, a confidential informant for the FBI testified on details of the group’s methods for recruiting and training. The audio was made available, while the video was withheld to protect their identity.

On day one of the hearings, FBI Special Agent Henrik Impola testified that the group of over a dozen men used social media to recruit and communicate with members. A recap of that hearing with Impola’s testimony can be found here.

The trial date has not yet been set.

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