By Jessica Mathews & Jon King / news@whmi.com


A first prison sentence has been handed down for a local man charged in an alleged plot to kidnap Governor Gretchen Whitmer.

Ty Garbin of Hartland Township was sentenced to just over six years in prison during his sentencing hearing Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Grand Rapids. Garbin admitted his role in the alleged scheme weeks after being arrested last fall. The government had recommended a nine-year prison term. Garbin apologized to Whitmer, who was not in court, and her family. “I cannot even begin to imagine the amount of stress and fear her family felt because of my actions. And for that I am truly sorry,” the 25-year-old aviation mechanic told the judge.

Garbin is among six men charged in federal court but the only one who has pleaded guilty. The government noted Garbin’s “exceptional” cooperation and asked the judge to give him credit for helping investigators reinforce their case against his co-defendants. He’s likely to testify at any trial. The FBI last October said it broke up a scheme to kidnap the Democratic governor by anti-government extremists who were upset over Whitmer’s coronavirus restrictions.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Nils Kessler said Garbin filled in gaps in the government’s knowledge by recounting conversations and actions that did not include any government informant or ability to record. In his plea agreement, Garbin said the six men trained at his property near Luther, Michigan, constructing a “shoot house” to resemble Whitmer’s vacation home and “assaulting it with firearms.”

The government and Garbin’s lawyers took turns praising his willingness to admit guilt even before investigators revealed all the evidence following his arrest.

Garbin “didn’t hold back,” Kessler said. “He would come out and say, ‘We planned to do this and I was knowingly a part of it.’ He sat for hours answering all of our questions.”

Indeed, defense attorney Gary Springstead told the judge that Garbin “is going to be a star witness” against the others. He later told reporters that Garbin “can tell what was in his mind at the time, which is that this wasn’t some fanciful plot. This was real. And he can tell the government why he believes other people had the same intent that he did and show them where to look.”

“Ty Garbin testified in front of the grand jury in support of the indictment that got him indicted. He is truly, genuinely and sincerely sorry,” said Mark Satawa, another defense lawyer.

Whitmer provided a victim impact statement to the court, of which portions were released. The governor stated that laws must be enforced but “there is room for grace and rehabilitation” for those who help “in unearthing the hate that has taken root in our society. … I would like to acknowledge this defendant for taking responsibility, accepting the consequences of his actions and assisting in bringing others to justice.”