A Kauai tax preparer has been sentenced to 18 months in prison for falsifying information on tax returns for his clients.

Federal prosecutors said today that 66-year-old Dennis Nimkie admitted he prepared individual tax returns for clients which he knew contained false expenses in order to obtain tax refunds or reduce their tax liability.

U.S. District Judge J. Michael Seabright also ordered Nimkie to pay a total of $116,000 in restitution to four of his former clients and the federal government.