Trump is a co-conspirator in Michigan's 2020 false electors plot, state investigator says. Meanwhile, Arizona announces its own indictments

LANSING, Mich. — Former President Donald Trump and some of his top aides were co-conspirators in the plot to submit a certificate falsely claiming he won Michigan's 2020 election, an investigator for Attorney General Dana Nessel's office testified Wednesday, as new details of the effort to prosecute the alleged scheme took shape in two battleground states.

Howard Shock, a special agent for Nessel, said Trump; Mark Meadows, who was Trump's chief of staff; and Rudy Giuliani, who was his personal lawyer, are considered "unindicted co-conspirators" in Michigan's false elector case. Shock's comments came the same day 11 Arizona Republican electors and seven other Trump allies, including Meadows and Giuliani, were indicted in Arizona.

In total, over the last two days, Shock, the Michigan investigator, identified 11 conspirators who haven't been charged with a crime. That means Michigan prosecutors believe they participated, to some extent, in an alleged scheme to commit forgery by creating a false document asserting Trump had won Michigan's 16 electoral votes when Democrat Joe Biden had won them.

Shock's testimony highlighted the sixth day of preliminary examinations in Ingham County District Court as Nessel's office pursues felony charges against a group of Republican activists who signed the certificate of votes claiming Trump won.

In July, Nessel, a Democrat, charged the 16 Republican electors with eight felonies each, including conspiracy to commit forgery, which would carry a penalty of up to 14 years behind bars. But Nessel's office has said its investigation is ongoing.

Eleven Republicans in Arizona who submitted a similar false certificate were charged Wednesday with conspiracy, fraud and forgery, according to The Associated Press. The Arizona grand jury indictment described an unindicted co-conspirator who is clearly Trump.

In Michigan, on Wednesday morning, lawyer Duane Silverthorn, who's representing elector Michele Lundgren of Detroit, read a list of names, asking Shock if the individuals were unindicted conspirators in the state's probe.

Shock said "yes" to Trump, Giuliani and Meadows. Trump is set to be the Republican presidential nominee this fall.

Shock also said "yes" to former Michigan Republican Party Chairwoman Laura Cox and the names of other Michigan Republicans, including former state House Speaker Tom Leonard, his wife, Jenell Leonard, and Stu Sandler, a GOP consultant and legal adviser to Cox. Silverthorn didn't ask Shock for additional details of the co-conspirators' alleged involvement.

Sandler labeled Shock's comments "outrageous."

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