SEATTLE -- Robert and Sharon Merki, the last two members of the neo-Nazi group The Order to be sentenced, received long prison terms for their role in a plot to overthrow the U.S. government.
The Merkis were among 22 members of the white supremacy group to be convicted on charges stemming from crimes, including robberies and murders, that prosecutors said were committed to advance their right-wing cause.
The 30 years given Merki and the 25 years for his wife were the longest terms given any of the dozen members who negotiated plea bargains with the government.
Robert Merki apologized for acting as a lookout for The Order's heist of $3.6 million from a California armored car.
'This is a good time to express my sincere regrets for the offenses I committed,' Merki said. He was also sorry for being 'drawn toward, being motivated by, thought patterns and attitudes ... that bordered on fanatic insanity.'
They were sentenced by U.S. District Judge Walter McGovern, who followed stipulations agreed to when the couple made their pleas last April.
Robert Merki's sentence included 20 years for racketeering, five years for counterfeiting and two five-year sentences -- to run concurrently -- for bail jumping and counterfeiting in Oregon. He will have to serve at least 10 years to become eligible for parole.
His wife, who received 20 years for racketeering and the two five-year concurrent charges for the Oregon crimes, is eligible immediately under the stipulation.
Merki, 52, testified during the trial of 10 other members of The Order that he counterfeited money and dressed like a woman during the $3.6 million July 1984 holdup of an armored car in Ukiah, Calif.
He and his wife were charged with manufacturing counterfeit $10 bills that came to be known among group members as 'bluebacks' due to their poor quality.
The recovery of some of the bogus bills in Philadelphia and the arrest of an Order associate provided a major break in the FBI's manhunt for Order leader Robert Mathews, who was killed in a gun battle with agents in December 1984.
Prosecutors said the money from the crimes was used to buy weapons for attacks on law enforcement and assassinations of public officials at odds with the neo-Nazis' aims.
Ten members of the Order were convicted in Seattle on Dec. 30 of multiple counts of racketeering and conspiracy.
Last month McGovern handed down 100 year prison sentences to two members, including Bruce Carroll Pierce, the suspected triggerman in the assassination of Jewish radio talk show host Alan Berg in Denver on June 18, 1984.
Other members received sentences ranging from time served and probation to 60 years in prison.
