Co-leader of Whitmer kidnapping plot sentenced to 16 years in prison

Adam Fox, the man convicted of plotting to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, was sentenced on Tuesday to 16 years in prison.

A jury found Fox and co-defendant Barry Croft Jr. guilty of conspiracy charges related to the kidnapping plot during a retrial in August after a jury earlier this year was unable to reach a unanimous verdict. 

Fox was sentenced in federal court on Tuesday, while Croft will be sentenced Wednesday, The Associated Press reported. Fox will receive credit for the more than two years behind bars since his arrest, and after his release, he will be supervised for five years.

Fox's sentence is the harshest so far in the plot to kidnap the Michigan Democrat. Earlier this month, three men involved in the scheme received sentences ranging from seven to 12 years. 

The government had requested life sentences for Fox and Croft, arguing that Fox was the "driving force urging their recruits to take up arms, kidnap the governor and kill those who stood in their way," while citing Croft's bomb-making skills and ideology as a factor.

Judge Robert J. Jonker said Fox's sentence was an adequate punishment and deterrent to future acts while life in prison was "too much."

"Something less than life gets the job done in this case," he said.

The case was rocked by allegations that the FBI used at least a dozen informants to infiltrate the extremist group and that an agent told an informant to lie. Attorneys for five men arrested in the plot had sought for the case to be dismissed on grounds of entrapment.