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Florida man charged with plotting attack on Trump supporters

Authorities say the man planned on violently confronting protesters who were set to gather at the state Capitol last month.
Credit: AP
FILE - In this Wednesday, July 17, 2019 file photo, President Donald Trump gestures to the crowd as he arrives to speak at a campaign rally at Williams Arena in Greenville, N.C. Donald Trump’s first impeachment trial centered on a phone call that Americans never heard with the leader of a country far away, Ukraine. His second was far different. It centered on the rage, violence and anguish of one day in Washington itself. Together the two impeachment trials Trump faced illustrated his ability to escape consequences for actions that even many Republicans denounced. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File)

A Florida man accused of trying to organize an armed response to supporters of former President Donald Trump when they were expected at the state Capitol last month has been indicted on federal charges. 

According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office Northern District of Florida, Daniel Baker was formally charged with two counts of transmitting a communication in interstate commerce containing a threat to kidnap or injure.

Baker was arrested by the FBI on Jan.15, after authorities say he issued a "Call to Arms" to violently confront protesters gathering at the state's Capitol building.

Authorities say Baker was using social media to recruit people in a plot to create an armed circle around protesters and trap them in the Capitol. Court documents describes a series of threats of violence Baker made on social media. 

"At a time of widespread alarm and turmoil in our nation, and at state capitals in particular, Baker’s actions clearly posed a threat to public order," U.S. Attorney Keefe said. "Though some media descriptions cast Baker in a sympathetic light, the indictment alleges that he sought to physically stop the expression of political views different than his own, potentially through armed violence."

Baker is described as anti-Trump, anti-government, anti-white supremacists and anti-police.

The Associated Press contributed to this article.

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