As the jury sat by, prosecution played secret tapes on Tuesday that unveiled the Two-for-One plot by Fairbanks Militia members.

The setting for the tapes, recorded by a concealed wire worn by Militia sergeant Gerald Olsen, was an old school bus converted into a living space by Militia Major Ken Thesing. Major Coleman Barney and Militia Commander Schaeffer Cox were in attendence as well. Olsen was working undercover for the FBI. Olsen is now the government’s star witness.

The case against Schaeffer Cox, Colman Barney and Lonnie Vernon is taking place in U.S. District Court and is being presided over by a visiting judge from Washington state, Judge Robert Bryan. They are being tried on Conspiracy as well as weapons charges. The trial is on its 11th day. The trial may last as long as another month.

Olsen testified that there were over 100 hours of recordings, a series of recordings played yesterday were made just prior to Cox’s scheduled trial on misdemeanor charges of failing to inform a Fairbanks officer that he was carrying a concealed weapon. The recordings , played in court began with Cox telling those in attendance how disgusted he was with the two court clerks at the Fairbanks courthouse, saying “They need to dangle together like wind chimes.” As the taped conversation progressed, Cox spoke of the alternatives, saying “We can hide out or run.” That is when the conversation turned to “Operation 141.”

Operation “141” or one life for one life, quickly evolved into two-for-one as Thesing pointed out that the group was not thinking on a grand enough scale, in response, Cox said, “Hell, let’s make it two-for-one,” continueing he said, “So 241 would be that mode and then hopefully the price is so high that they leave people on the shelf.”

Fearing that the term would be heard over tapped lines, Cox cautioned his companions to instead use the term “Operation 241” to fool listeners.

Defense attorneys intend to argue that the men on trial are in court because the government overstepped their bounds and were ensnared by an informant who advocated and pushed for violence. Instead, the lawyers for the defense say, the men are devout christians who intended only to protect loved ones if it ever became necessary to do so.

Norm Olsen, who now lives in Nikiski, and is the founder of the Michigan Militia, made a statement, “So I don’t understand what’s going on here,” he said. “But the feds want to push it, I think, because Schaeffer is such an outstanding spokesperson for the constitution.”

Prior to the trial, during a pretrial hearing, Cox denied the legitimacy of the Alaska State Court system, he beleives that all people are sovereigns and that they are not required to obey any laws unless they directly harm other sovereigns.

Cox and his co-defendents were arrested in March of last year.