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The self-proclaimed "president" of the sovereign citizen group Republic for the
united States of America (RuSA) was sentenced Wednesday to 18 years in federal prison
following his conviction on fraud and tax charges.

James Timothy Turner, who goes by the name Tim Turner, was convicted in a federal jury
in Alabama in March after court filings and evidence showed that he went around the country
in 2008 and 2009, holding seminars on how to submit fraudulent bonds to the government
as payment for federal taxes. Turner even once sent a $300 million bond in his own name
to the Treasury Department.

He was convicted on conspiracy to defraud the United States, attempting to pay taxes with
fictitious financial instruments, attempting to obstruct and impede the IRS, failing to file a
2009 federal income tax return and falsely testifying under oath in a bankruptcy proceeding,
according to a Justice Department press release.