Biography
Joshua Stafford was an activist connected to the Occupy Cleveland movement who was arrested on April 30, 2012 in connection with a federal investigation into an alleged plot involving explosives at the Brecksville-Northfield High Level Bridge near Cleveland, Ohio. Prosecutors charged Stafford with conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction, attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction, and malicious attempt to destroy property used in interstate commerce. While federal officials portrayed the case as a counter-terrorism success, defense attorneys and supporters argued that the plot was largely manufactured by an undercover FBI informant who steered the defendants’ actions. Stafford later pleaded guilty and received a substantial federal prison sentence.
