Former top Larry Hogan aide killed in confrontation with FBI following 21-day manhunt

Some Never Trump conservatives were disappointed when, in March, former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan announced that he had ruled out the possibility of seeking the GOP's 2024 presidential nomination. Hogan, who is a conservative Republican but isn't a far-right MAGA culture warrior, wasn't especially controversial during his eight years as Maryland's governor. In fact, he was reelected by 12 percent in 2018, defeating Democratic nominee Ben Jealous (a former NAACP president) in a deep blue state.

But one Hogan-related controversy during his second term involved Roy C. McGrath, who was one of his top aides and faced federal wire fraud and embezzlement charges. The 53-year-old McGrath, according to the Washington Post, has been killed in a confrontation with the FBI.

McGrath, the Post reports, died in Knoxville, Tennessee on Monday, April 3 following a "21-day manhunt launched after he failed to show up to federal court in Baltimore."

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In an official statement, the FBI said, "During the arrest the subject, Roy McGrath, sustained injury and was transported to the hospital. The FBI takes all shooting incidents involving our agents or task force members seriously."

Joseph Murtha, who was McGrath's attorney, told the Post that details on McGrath's death are "unclear to me at this time." The Maryland-based attorney added, "I haven't gotten any information on whether Roy died from gunfire from an agent or whether it was a self-inflicted wound."

On March 28, the FBI offered a $10,000 reward for "information leading to McGrath's arrest."

Before becoming a top Hogan aide, McGrath was executive director of the Maryland Environmental Service (MES). The criminal charges stemmed from allegations that McGrath had deceived officials in order to obtain a large MES severance package. Prosecutors, the Post notes, alleged that "McGrath falsified time sheets, recording that he was at work while he took two vacations, including one to Europe in 2019 with his girlfriend, whom he later married."

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According to the Post, "Before McGrath was found, Murtha said he had last spoken with his client by telephone the day before trial. They had planned to meet outside the courtroom at 8:45 the next morning. McGrath had planned to testify in his own defense, Murtha said. 'More than anything else, I have a concern for his safety,' he said."

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Read the Washington Post’s full report at this link (subscription required).