A second convicted kidnap plotter took the stand Tuesday with explosive testimony, telling jurors he joined the plan to snatch Gov. Gretchen Whitmer because he was on a suicide mission.
“I was hoping that I would be killed in the process,” Kaleb Franks testified. “I no longer wanted to live.”
Franks explained that he had mentally fallen apart following the deaths of three family members in one year: his mom, stepdad and stepbrother. He did not say how they died, only that he was looking for an escape, and so he joined a scheme that he believed could make that happen.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Roth asked him to explain why he felt he would die in the kidnapping scheme.
More from the trial:
Feds’ star witness Ty Garbin testifies against his cohorts in Whitmer kidnap plot trial
Witness: Feds set up Whitmer kidnap suspects by promising beer, Buffalo Wild Wings
Defense fights to put ‘double agent’ on stand in Whitmer kidnap plot trial
“I felt that it was a very risky choice,” Franks answered, adding he was preparing for “getting in a shootout with the police.”
“In my opinion, we would be bound to die.”
Franks is the second convicted defendant to take the stand in the trial of four men charged with plotting to kidnap Whitmer out of anger over COVID-19 restrictions.
Franks, whose lawyer once aggressively argued entrapment claims, struck a deal with the government and pleaded guilty one month before the trial, admitting he willingly joined the kidnapping plan and that no one set him up.
“(Franks) was not entrapped or induced to commit any crimes by these individuals. (He) also knows (his co-defendants) were not entrapped, based on personal observation and discussions,” Franks’ plea deal states.
Franks’ testimony follows that of Ty Garbin, who spent two days on the stand, telling jurors that he willingly joined the plan to kidnap the governor, and so did the others.
Franks took the stand at about 12:15 p.m. Thursday. Among the first comments he made to the jury was admitting that he lied about his involvement in the kidnap plot when he was arrested by the FBI in a sting outside an Ypsilanti warehouse in October 2020.
“I didn’t want to go to jail,” Franks testified.
According to prior courtroom testimony, Franks, who went by the moniker “Red Hot” on encrypted group chats, is a former addict who turned his life around and remained sober since he went to jail for a short stint in 2013 or 2014. Prior to his 2020 arrest in the alleged kidnap plot, Franks was a peer advocate who worked with the court in Pontiac, advising probationers.
According to the prosecution, Franks has a juvenile conviction for second-degree home invasion, which has since been expunged, plus a drug offense. He also was involved in procuring illegal weapons, prosecutors have said.
Yearbooks, media reports and LinkedIn postings show Franks had a promising future before he got caught up in the alleged kidnapping plot.
The one-time Brighton High School student studied clinical psychology at Washtenaw Community College, and described himself on LinkedIn as a “hardworking individual who is always looking for a new challenge to tackle.”
“I have great people skills which helps me in my current field (drug and alcohol addiction treatment). My leadership skills help when a situation calls for someone to step up and take the lead. I’m able to juggle multiple tasks at once and work under pressure,” Franks’ LinkedIn posting reads.
Franks was also quoted in a a Metro Parent article in the summer of 2020 – the same time he was plotting to kidnap the governor. The article was about his peer recovery work and his prior addictions.
“We all make mistakes. … I understand that I have to acknowledge that and work on it as things are coming at me,” Franks said in the article. “I don’t have to relapse; I can correct my course of action right there.”
Franks’ testimony continues.
Tresa Baldas: tbaldas@freepress.com
