The FBI agent credited with stopping a kidnapping plot against Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has been arrest for ” intent to do great bodily harm, less than murder following a domestic incident with his wife Sunday,” the Detroit News reports.
FBI Special Agent Richard Trask, 39, of Kalamazoo was released on a $10,000 personal recognizance bond following arraignment.
The kidnapping plot has come under increased scrutiny after it was revealed there were numerous federal agents or informants “involved” in the plot. The arrest complicated the case against the alleged kidnapping.
His arrest comes at a critical juncture in the criminal case against five men charged in federal court with plotting to kidnap Whitmer. Defense lawyers last week leveled a broad attack on the foundation of the high-profile case and suggested a second FBI agent was trying to sabotage defense teams.
Trask, 39, has worked for the FBI since 2011 and served as the FBI’s public face in the Whitmer case, testifying in federal court about the investigation. He has worked on cases involving espionage, terrorism and domestic extremism investigations.
“It’s the last thing you want for a major case like this,” said Andrew Arena, former special agent in charge of the FBI’s Detroit office. “Any time you give the defense any ammunition it’s not good.”