A Manhattan couple seeks a special prosecutor in Will County to investigate prosecutors and federal agents who pursued a forfeiture case against them that failed in court.

On Feb. 11, Frank Andreano, attorney for Jeff Regnier and Greta Keranen filed a motion for a judge to appoint a special prosecutor to “investigate the actions” of the forfeiture unit of Will County State’s Attorney James Glasgow’s Office.

The motion also requests a special prosecutor investigate the federal agents who “verified the truth of the allegations” in a 2023 case filed against the Regnier and Keranen for forfeiture of two Ford Broncos vehicles.

Regnier and Keranen have suffered “documented abuses at the hands of both prosecutors and federal agents,” according to Andreano’s motion.

“A special prosecutor is warranted not just for the narrow matter at hand but because these identified abuses are neither isolated nor an aberration in Will County,” Andreano’s motion said.

The court docket does not yet show a hearing date for Andreano’s motion.

Glasgow’s office declined to comment.

“The motion was recently delivered to our office and is currently under review,” said Laura Byrne, Will County assistant state’s attorney.

The motion follows a Jan. 21 ruling by Will County Judge Brian Barrett in favor of Regnier and Keranen to keep the two Ford Broncos that were seized from them in a federal investigation.

In Barrett’s ruling, he said he was disturbed by the “authoritarianism” that was “displayed by the government” in the forfeiture case, which he said was done to “punish the citizens.”

Last November, Regnier and Keranen were acquitted of charges connected to the forfeiture case. But Glasgow’s prosecutors nevertheless continued onward with the case.

In Andreano’s Feb. 11 motion, he said Regnier and Keranen ran several successful businesses, including Kee Firearms in New Lenox.

During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, Kee Firearms “boomed but the banks were closed,” Andreano’s motion said.

That led the couple to hire a Brink’s truck to ferry cash from Kee Firearms to the bank, which raised red flags to the federal government, the motion said.

Gun manufacturers are required by law to keep meticulous records, Andreano’s motion said. An audit by federal officials “determined that no crimes had been committed and closed their inquiry,” the motion said.

The motion said “disappointed field agents” were unable to “convince their superior officers” to escalate a “prosecution declination” to higher officials at the U.S. Department of Justice, Andreano’s motion said.

But those field agents were able to persuade Glasgow’s prosecutors to pursue the matter, Andreano’s motion said.

Prosecutors were able to seize “millions of dollars” and vehicles from Regnier and Keranen in advance of a trial based on allegations that the couple were illegally hiding the source of COVID-19 pandemic relief money, Andreano’s motion said.

Andreano’s motion said the allegations were “legally and factually unfounded.”

Prosecutors instructed Fidelity Investments to liquidate the couple’s retirement accounts and sell all their annuities and stocks “without seeking judicial permission,” Andreano’s motion said.

The “improper sales” of investments and securities have caused Regnier and Keranen to suffer a loss of up to $2 million, Andreano’s motion said.