Thursday, March 28

Girlfriend of Whitmer kidnap plot suspect Barry Croft cries on stand


This file booking photo provided by the Delaware Department of Justice shows Barry Croft.

It was a tense morning on the stand for the girlfriend of Barry Croft as she had to testify about some potentially damning words that her boyfriend made while being secretly recorded by the FBI — words that were eventually shared with the jury in the Gov. Gretchen Whitmer kidnap trial.

The audio recording captured Croft, who is accused of building explosives to help carry out the kidnap plan, talking to his 10-year-old daughter as she interrupted his militia group meeting.

“Daddy … do you want a Dorito?” the girl asked.

“Honey, I’m making explosives, can you get away from me please?” Croft is heard telling his daughter while his alleged cohorts laughed in the background.

Croft’s girlfriend, who is currently taking care of his three children while he remains jailed in the kidnap case, heard the conversation. When the prosecutor asked her whether she remembered which daughter Croft was talking to, she paused, then struggled to get the words out.

Then came the tears as she identified Croft’s youngest daughter.

The girlfriend was among the last government witnesses to testify for the prosecution, which rested its case Wednesday morning following testimony from FBI forensic examiners about materials found in Croft’s home, including smokeless powder and explosive targets. One examiner said the materials could easily be used to make an improvised explosive device.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *