A man who became enraged by state-mandated COVID-19 restrictions and plotted to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) was sentenced to over six years in prison on Wednesday.
Ty Garbin, a 25-year-old aviation mechanic, pleaded guilty last fall to his role in the scheme to kidnap Whitmer at her vacation home. He will also have to pay a $2,500 fine and serve three years of supervised release after his prison time.
Garbin apologized to the governor and her family during the court hearing.
“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,” Garbin told the judge.
In her statement addressed to the judge during the sentencing hearing, Whitmer said she could see Garbin “taking responsibility” for his action but also argued that the damage he was caused is bigger than her.
“But this is bigger than me. It has taken a toll on my family, the community, the state, the nation and democracy itself. No one has been untouched by the crisis that has plagued us,” she said.
“But even now we have not reached the far shore. Threats continue. I have looked out my windows and seen large groups of heavily armed people within 30 yards of my home. I have seen myself hung in effigy. Days ago at a demonstration, there was a sign that called for ‘burning the witch.’ For me, things will never be the same,” she added.
During the pandemic last year, Whitmer ordered major COVID-19 related restrictions, infuriating many Republicans.
