Catch Me if You Can! Where's Warren?  Now he's in Prison!

Courtesy of the Nevada Highway Patrol Warren Jeffs, the FLDS "Prophet", was indicted in Mohave County, Arizona on one count each of sexual conduct with a minor and conspiracy to commit sexual conduct with a minor.  He was charged under an Arizona law that makes it a felony to sanction forced marriages of teenagers with much older men. Warren isn't accused of having sexual contact with the unidentified 16-year-old victim himself. In July, 2005, the Attorneys General of Arizona and Utah announced a $10,000 reward for information leading to his arrest.  The FBI joined the hunt by filing a federal warrant for unlawful flight to avoid prosecution against Warren and later added their own $50,000 reward for finding him.   In April 2006, the Washington County (Utah) Attorney charged Warren with two counts of rape as an accomplice, a first-degree felony, and a judge signed a $500,000 cash-only warrant for his arrest.   On May 6, 2006 the FBI made Warren Jeffs one of their "Top Ten Most Wanted Fugitives" and upped the reward for his capture to $100,000.   That night he was featured on "America's Most Wanted". Warren was on the run and trying to stay one step ahead of the Law! He was spotted in Mesquite, Nevada and in Durango, Colorado.  Rumor had it that he often traveled to areas around Colorado City, Arizona and Bountiful, Canada to perform "celestial" plural marriages.  He may have periodically been hiding out at the compound in Eldorado, Texas or the one in Pringle, South Dakota. Warren was arrested riding in a RED Cadillac wearing shorts and a short-sleeve white T-shirt, munching on a salad and heading north out of Las Vegas just after dusk on Monday, August 28, 2006. Warren was allowed to change into his "regular" clothes before he was taken from the FBI office to the Clark County Detention Center and photographed for his mug shot. One of his many wives, Naomi was also riding in the car and she was wearing JEANS. These outfits certainly are a far cry from the ankle to wrist dress code, worn over white religious undergarments, that Warren's faithful followers are required to wear. In the RED Caddy was a LOT of LOOT: tens-of-thousands of dollars in cash (mostly $100 dollar bills), multiple cell phones, multiple pre-paid credit cards, multiple sets of car keys, GPS systems, laptop computers, wigs - you name it.

Effort to Find Warren Jeffs Could be Tricky

John Hollenhorst Reporting KSL TV Channel 5 Originally broadcast June 13, 2005

Law enforcement agencies around the nation have been put on the lookout for polygamist leader Warren Jeffs, but it's not certain they'll make an aggressive attempt to arrest him.   The situation has become legally tricky and worrisome.   First we should point out, the Jeffs group has never been linked to acts of violence.  But investigators say Jeffs has become increasingly secretive and isolated.  They're not sure what to expect now that he's been charged with arranging an illegal marriage to an underage girl.   Last Friday at the Jeffs compound in Texas, a neighbor reportedly saw a convoy of vans and SUV's leaving the ranch.  That was just after criminal charges against Jeffs were announced.  No one outside really knows if Jeffs is there, or was there, or at other FLDS compounds in Utah, Arizona, Colorado, Canada and possibly Mexico.   Arizona investigator Gary Engels developed the criminal case against Jeffs.  He doubts the secretive FLDS prophet will ever willingly surrender.   Gary Engels, Arizona Investigator: "I really can't see him doing that because I really believe he thinks he's above the laws of the land."     Read more

Where's leader of sect?

Polygamist last seen in Nevada; law officers wary

By Mark Shaffer The Arizona Republic - Flagstaff Bureau Originally published June 14, 2005

Law-enforcement officials in Arizona and Texas said Monday that they aren't yet willing to take action to get indicted polygamist leader Warren Jeffs into custody.   In large part that's because they say they don't know the whereabouts of the 49-year-old president of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.   "The last reported sighting of him we had was in Mesquite, Nev., four or five weeks ago," said Mohave County Attorney Matthew Smith.   Smith announced Friday that Jeffs had been indicted on one count each of sexual conduct with a minor and conspiracy to commit sexual conduct with a minor in Colorado City from March to June 2002.   Jeffs isn't accused of having sexual contact with the unidentified 16-year-old victim himself.  He was charged under a recent state law that makes it a felony to sanction forced marriages of teenagers with much older men.   Colorado City is near Hildale, Utah, where the church sect is located.   David Doran, sheriff of Schleicher County in western Texas, where the polygamist sect bought land and built several buildings last year, said in a prepared statement that he had been in contact with those living on the YFZ ranch, near the town of Eldorado, since the warrant was issued.   "There is no evidence or information indicating that Jeffs is on the property," Doran said.     Read more

Polygamist ordered to give up

Ariz. attorney general says fugitive Jeffs has one week to comply

By Deborah Frazier Rocky Mountain News Originally published June 15, 2005

Warren Jeffs, the fugitive polygamist leader who has a secluded retreat in southwestern Colorado, has a week to turn himself in, Arizona's attorney general said Tuesday.   A grand jury in Mohave County, Ariz., indicted Jeffs last week on felony child sexual abuse charges for allegedly arranging a marriage between a 16-year-old girl and an older married man in 2002.   Warrants for Jeffs' arrest were sent to Montezuma County in Colorado and Eldorado, Texas, where his followers have built communities, and to Utah and Arizona, where his sect has long been headquartered.   "We'll give him some time to turn himself in, maybe a week, then we will look at other options," said Terry Goddard, Arizona's attorney general.   Goddard declined to specify the other options.   Jeffs is president of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, which splintered off from the traditional Mormon church in the late 1890s.   He has an estimated 10,000 followers in Utah, Arizona, Texas, Canada, Mexico, Nevada and at the southwest Colorado refuge, about 10 miles north of Mancos.   "If Mr. Jeffs is out there and would like to turn himself in and wants to do it in a discreet fashion, we would encourage him to come in with his attorney," said Montezuma County Sheriff Gerald Wallace.   Wallace said Jeffs could pay the $500,000 bond, a court date would be set and he would be released.     Read more

Leader in B.C. sect flees in polygamy case

U.S. prosecutors have charged him with arranging a marriage between a teenaged girl and a married man

By Jane Armstrong The Globe and Mail Originally published Thursday, June 16, 2005

Vancouver — The reclusive leader of a Utah-based sect that broke away from the Mormons -- and has a large colony in British Columbia -- is now a fugitive after U.S. prosecutors charged him with arranging a marriage between a teenaged girl and a married man.   The arrest warrant for Warren Jeffs, president of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, has raised fears of a violent showdown between authorities and the volatile, 49-year-old leader reminiscent of the deadly 1993 standoff at Waco, Tex.   Until recently, Mr. Jeffs was thought to be at a gated compound in the tiny Texas town of Eldorado surrounded by hand-picked devotees.  But Arizona prosecutors, who last week filed two felony sex-related charges, concede they don't know their suspect's whereabouts.   Mojave County attorney Matthew Smith even conceded Canada might be a hiding spot.  "It's not beyond the realm of possibility."   "But I have not heard that," Mr. Smith said in a telephone interview.  "The best guess for a lot of people is that he's in Texas."   The RCMP said U.S. officials have not contacted them, and that they have no reason to believe Mr. Jeffs is in Canada.  Staff Sergeant John Ward said the Mounties would co-operate if the United States made an official request.     Read more

FBI seeking leader of polygamist sect

By Mark Shaffer The Arizona Republic - Flagstaff Bureau Originally published July 8, 2005

The FBI on Friday issued a plea for the public's help in finding the fugitive leader of Colorado City's polygamist sect.   Warren S. Jeffs, 49, was indicted by a Mohave County grand jury in early June on sex-crimes charges involving marrying off an underage girl to another member of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, a multiple-marriage sect.   Jeffs was charged in a federal warrant with unlawful flight to avoid prosecution on June 27 when he failed to surrender to authorities.   He was believed to have been on land owned by the FLDS near Eldorado, Texas, when he was indicted before fleeing for Colorado and, later to another polygamist community with ties to Colorado City in British Columbia, near the U.S. border.   Deborah McCarley, a special agent for the FBI in Phoenix, said that the agency joined the hunt for Jeffs after assistance was sought by the Mohave County Attorney's Office.   McCarley said such public notices generally are reserved for the worst cases, like the search for Robert Fisher of Scottsdale, who was accused of killing his wife and two children and burning their home in 2001.   "But this is an individual (Jeffs) who is wanted for a very heinous crime, also," McCarley said.     Read more

$10K Reward Offered For Warren Jeffs

The Associated Press KUTV Channel 2 Originally published July 13, 2005

The attorneys general for Arizona and Utah on Wednesday announced a $10,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of the reclusive leader of a polygamous church based in communities along the states' common border.   Warren Jeffs, who has not been publicly sighted in months, was charged in Arizona in early June with counts that include conspiracy to commit sexual conduct with a minor.   "I find it hard to believe (Jeffs is) the active leader of 10,000 and no one knows where he is," Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard said.   Jeffs is accused of arranging the marriage of a 16-year-old girl to another man.  If convicted, he could face up to two years in jail.   Colorado City, Ariz., and Hildale, Utah, are dominated by the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, a sect that broke away from the Mormon church and practices polygamy.   Capturing the 49-year-old Jeffs is considered to be a key in ending the turmoil in the two towns, where polygamist men marry one wife legally and then take on other women as so-called "spiritual" wives.   "It is because he is the leader.   It is because he is the role model for literally thousands of people," Goddard said of the extensive efforts to locate Jeffs.  "It is particularly, perhaps uniquely, important that he have to answer these charges before a court of law."     Read more

Reward Posted For Polygamist Leader Warren Jeffs

Sam Penrod reporting KSL TV Channel 5 Originally broadcast July 13, 2005

State prosecutors posted a reward today for information on the whereabouts of polygamist leader Warren Jeffs.  Jeffs has eluded authorities for several weeks, after he was indicted on charges of arranging marriages involving underage girls.   Sam Penrod reports there is now a big bounty on Jeffs's head.   Ten thousand dollars, that is the price Arizona and Utah prosecutors say they will pay, for information leading to Jeffs' arrest.   It is the latest attempt to force Jeffs to appear in a court of law, an appearance that law enforcement officials all agree will require someone close to Jeffs, to turn him in.   The reclusive leader of the FLDS sect has rarely been seen in public, but in recent months, few of his followers even report seeing Warren Jeffs.  Indicted in June on charges conspiracy to commit sexual conduct with a minor, for allegedly arranging numerous marriages of underage girls, Jeffs remains a fugitive from justice.     Read more

States offer reward for FLDS leader

Attorneys general offer $10,000 for information leading to Jeffs' arrest

By Patrice St. Germain The Spectrum Originally published July 14, 2005

ST. GEORGE - The Arizona and Utah attorney generals are banding together to track down Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints leader Warren Jeffs by offering a $10,000 reward for information leading to his arrest.  It's the first time that either office has posted a reward.   In June, a Mohave County, Ariz. grand jury indicted Jeffs on one count of sexual conduct with a minor and conspiracy to commit sexual conduct with a minor.  If convicted, he faces four months to two years in jail.   Jeffs has not been seen publicly since January.   Cedar City private investigator Sam Brower said he doesn't think the reward will work.   "I think it's (the reward) a good thing and it's about time and maybe it will help bring some people out of the woodwork," Brower said.  "But, most who may know where Jeffs is don't consider it a money issue.  It's a spiritual issue and most who know will not be plied with money."     Read more

News agencies descend on Colorado City

Hunt for FLDS leader captures national interest

By Patrice St. Germain The Spectrum Originally published July 20, 2005

COLORADO CITY, ARIZ. - During the past few weeks, interest in the twin cities of Hildale and Colorado City has increased as crews from local to national news agencies and other media, including a team from the television show, "America's Most Wanted," have visited the polygamist communities.   Most of the interest revolves around Warren Jeffs, the head of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.   Jeffs was indicted in June by the Mohave County Attorney's Office on one count of sexual conduct with a minor and one count of conspiracy to commit sexual conduct with a minor.   The FBI joined the hunt when a federal warrant for unlawful flight to avoid prosecution was filed against Jeffs.  Most recently, the Utah and Arizona Attorneys General banded together to offer a $10,000 reward for information leading to Jeffs' arrest.   While "America's Most Wanted" normally deals with more violent crimes, Alison Hemmingsen, a freelance producer for Morning Light Media, said the timing was right.   "I pitched the idea to 'America's Most Wanted' several times, but I pitched it again and things have been happening," Hemmingsen said.   "I think part of the interest has to do with the kids being hurt."     Read more

Manhunt for the Mormon with 70 wives

By Chris Ayres in Los Angeles Belfast Telegraph - Belfast, Ireland Originally published July 28, 2005

He's a controversial cult leader in Arizona with a reputed 70 wives - and now he's a hunted man with a $10,000 reward on his head.   The search for Warren Jeffs, the 49-year-old self-proclaimed prophet and president of the 10,000-member Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, marks the first time that Arizona has offered a reward for information leading to the capture and arrest of a fugitive, and it could mark the end of America's long-tolerated polygamist sects.   The FBI is also searching for Mr Jeffs on a federal warrant for "unlawful flight to avoid prosecution".   Mr Jeffs vanished several months ago from his palatial home in Colorado City, a secretive polygamist community with a population of about 5,000 that straddles the Utah-Arizona border.   His church, which has had absolute control over the town, stands accused of forcing teenage girls to marry elders as rewards for loyalty, and of driving young men away from their homes and families to thin out the male population.  Women are taught from infancy to be subservient or to suffer eternal damnation.     Read more

Jeffs on FBI's most-wanted list

By Patrice St. Germain The Spectrum Originally published August 19, 2005

ST. GEORGE - Warren Steed Jeffs, 49, the prophet of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Days Saints, is on the FBI's list of wanted fugitives for the month of August.   Jeffs was indicted by a Mohave County, Ariz., Grand Jury in June on charges of sexual conduct with a minor and conspiracy to commit sexual conduct with a minor.  Jeffs, whose whereabouts are unknown, is also charged with unlawful flight to avoid prosecution.  A federal arrest warrant was issued on June 27.   Debora McCarley, a special agent with the Phoenix office of the FBI, said information has been received that Jeffs is either in Texas or in Bountiful, British Columbia, Canada.  It's unlikely that Jeffs will be found locally.   When asked if Jeffs would be arrested if he is seen in the twin cities formerly known as Short Creek, Fred Barlow, police chief of the Hildale-Colorado City Town Marshall's Office, would not comment.     Read more

FBI searches Leesburg for polygamous leader

By Martin E. Comas Orlando Sentinel Originally published August 19, 2005

LEESBURG -- The leader of a polygamous sect of the Mormon Church who is wanted by the FBI on sex-crimes charges may be in Leesburg, a bureau spokesman said Thursday.   FBI officials in Jacksonville said they received a tip that Warren Jeffs was seen in Leesburg in June, possibly accompanied by his bodyguards and some of his followers, trying to buy property.   "We haven't been able to substantiate it, but we have been looking into it," said Special Agent Jeff Westcott, an FBI spokesman in Jacksonville.   Jeffs, 49, is the self-proclaimed leader, or prophet, of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.  Most of the sect's estimated 10,000 followers live in the border towns of Colorado City, Ariz., and Hildale, Utah.  The church also owns land in Colorado, Texas and British Columbia.   Jeffs is wanted on three charges of sexual conduct with a minor.  Those charges in connection to his role within his sect allege that he performs marriages between underage girls and older men, including one several years ago between a teenage girl and a married 28-year-old man.     Read more

County wants plan in place to handle crowds at Jeffs trial

By Brian DiTullio Today's News-Herald Originally published Wednesday, August 31, 2005

Mohave County officials want to be prepared should a "media circus" descend on Kingman for a trial involving Warren Jeffs.   Jeffs, spiritual leader of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and the twin communities of Colorado City and Hildale, Utah, would be required to appear in Superior Court in Kingman once he is found.  With national media interested in this story, County Supervisor Pete Byers is set to ask the Board of Supervisors to prepare for the possible trial.   "Clerk of Courts Virlynn Tinnel brought it up to me," said Byers in a press release.  "What are we going to do if they do catch Jeffs?  I have to believe it will be worse than the Michael Jackson trial.  He has had so much press worldwide that the area around our courthouse could become a media circus.  We may have to bus people in."   Byers said he is putting it on the Board of Supervisors meeting agenda and asking the board to form a committee "consisting of county and city officials, law enforcement and court personnel to prepare for the possibility of this thing happening.  We need to begin working on a plan now."     Read more

Possible Warren Jeffs Sighting In Utah County

Alex Cabrero and KSL NewsRadio Reporting KSL TV Channel 5 Originally broadcast October 21, 2005

Could Warren Jeffs have been in Lehi today?  The FBI is looking into that.  An employee at the new Cabela's store thought it was him and called police.  Now investigators are trying to find out if it's true.   If this person was Warren Jeffs, you might ask yourself why he was at Cabela’s, a very crowded and public place.   He is wanted by the FBI so you’d think it’d be one of the last places he would be found.  On the night before hunting season starts, the hunters packed Cabela’s to stock up on supplies, but it turns out the big catch might have already been in the store.   Jim Branin, Shopper: "It’s pretty crazy.  It’s kind of like a little electric energy going through here after he was gone."   He, as in Warren Jeffs, the FLDS church leader wanted by the FBI.  A cashier at the store thought she recognized him and called police.     Read more

Jeffs reportedly seen at Lehi store

By Jeremy Twitchell Deseret Morning News Originally published Saturday, October 22, 2005

LEHI — FBI officials are investigating a reported sighting of Warren Jeffs, the fugitive leader of a polygamous sect, Friday afternoon at Cabela's in Lehi.   A store employee told the FBI that a man he believed was Jeffs entered the store in a wheelchair and was accompanied by a number of women and two larger men that appeared to be security guards.   The group is said to have entered at about 3:30 p.m., stayed for about 45 minutes, and left in two vehicles.   Jeffs is the leader of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, a polygamy-practicing group residing along the Utah-Arizona border.   In June, an Arizona grand jury indicted Jeffs on one count of sexual conduct with a minor and conspiracy to commit sexual conduct with a minor.   The charges stem from a 2002 incident in which Jeffs allegedly performed the marriage of a 16-year-old girl to a 28-year-old man who was already married.   Jeffs fled Arizona and has also been charged with unlawful flight to avoid prosecution.     Read more

Investigation Continues Into Possible Jeffs Sighting

Alex Cabrero reporting KSL TV Channel 5 Originally broadcast October 22, 2005

Brent Robbins, Special Agent, Federal Bureau of Investigation: "We're continuing our efforts and conducting additional interviews in an attempt to locate mr. Jeffs."   Warren Jeffs, the wanted leader of the Fundamentalist LDS church, has always been on the run.  Now, there's a chance he's hiding in Utah.   A lot of people were shopping at the Cabela's store in Lehi last night, buying last minute supplies for today's hunt.  But could one of those shoppers actually have been Warren Jeffs?   A lot of people who heard the story last night are still thinking: There's no way Warren Jeff's was in Cabela's.   How many Elvis in Burger King jokes have you heard?  But, the FBI isn't joking, and even after looking at store surveillance tape, they're still taking it seriously.   The FBI is always ready for taking people in who don't want to be taken.  Today was just practice, part of an FBI citizens academy class.   But you never know, when the real situation might come up.     Read more

More Sightings of Warren Jeffs Reported

John Hollenhorst Reporting KSL TV Channel 5 Originally broadcast October 24, 2005

"We"ve had two more reports of possible sightings of Mr. Jeffs".   New clues in the search for a polygamous leader.  Or is it a case of mistaken identity?  Ever since a possible sighting last Friday at Cabela's outdoor store in Lehi FBI agents have tried to figure out if one of their most wanted fugitives is somewhere in Northern Utah.  Over the weekend they learned of two more possible sightings.   I suppose even a fugitive has to relax.  But the question is, would Warren Jeffs relax by going fishing at one of Utah's most popular lakes, with hundreds of people around who might recognize him?  One sighting was at Strawberry Reservoir.  Two employees at the marina store sold fishing licenses to four men, including one in a wheelchair.   Employees say the men didn't have IDs and kept changing their statements about whether they were Utah residents.  A few miles away, employees at the Daniel's Summit Lodge reported sighting a similar group.   FBI agents say the sightings add credibility to a reported sighting at the fishing tackle department Friday.     Read more

FBI: Fugitive Warren Jeffs Believed Seen Fishing

The Associated Press KUTV Channel 2 News Originally broadcast October 24, 2005

Federal agents are investigating a report that fugitive polygamous leader Warren Jeffs was at Strawberry Reservoir on Sunday - fishing.   "They got away before we had a chance to find them," FBI Special Agent Brent Robbins said Monday.   Agents are taking the tip seriously because it matches the description of Jeffs and a group of "bodyguard types" last week at a Cabela's outdoor store in Lehi, where they bought fishing gear.   Jeffs was seen on Sunday in a wheelchair, the same prop he used at Cabela's to divert attention from his slim physique, Robbins said.   "He's tall - 6-foot-4 - and at 150 pounds, that's like a walking toothpick.  He figures if he's in a wheelchair, that will disguise his obvious physical characteristics," Robbins said.   Sources also tell 2News that a crew truck the group was seen driving at Cabela's is registered to a Mr. Jared B. Jeffs.  The address was listed as Barlow Street in Hildale Utah.     Read more

Search for Warren Jeffs: Cars Lead Investigators to Colorado City

Sam Penrod reporting KSL TV Channel 5 Originally broadcast October 24, 2005

A new development tonight in the search for polygamist leader Warren Jeffs.  Cars spotted along the Wasatch Front this weekend, which may have contained him, have been found in his Colorado City headquarters.   Jeffs is still on the run.   And it's not clear if he was at Cabela's or Strawberry Reservoir.  But it seems clear if he wasn't, friends of the fugitive polygamous leader were.   The focus of the search tonight is now back in the Colorado City area.  And the Jeffs sightings in Northern Utah this weekend are becoming very credible, as law enforcement continues to pursue one of Utah's and Arizona's most wanted fugitives.   The search for polygamous leader Warren Jeffs, which intensified this weekend after a reported sighting at Cabelas, has now lead investigators back to Colorado City.   Around 2 p.m., the two SUV's spotted at Cabelas and also at Strawberry Reservoir on Sunday were found by Mohave County investigator Gary Engels, who built the criminal case against Jeffs for allegedly arranging polygamous marriages involving underage girls.   Gary Engels, Mohave County, Arizona, Investigator: "I just felt like it was necessary for me to drive around the town today to take a look and see if I could find any of these vehicles.  I got lucky and found one."     Read more

Investigators Believe Jeffs Frequently Visits Utah

John Hollenhorst Reporting KSL TV Channel 5 Originally broadcast October 25, 2005

"We're talking about somebody that has unlimited resources, many, many vehicles, and thousands of people that are willing to help him and hide him."   There have been NO arrests and NO more sightings of fugitive polygamist leader Warren Jeffs.   That follows several possible weekend sightings in Northern Utah.  But investigators say they believe Jeffs frequently comes to the area, exposing himself to possible arrest for one compelling reason, to perform plural marriages.   Authorities questioned several residents in Jeffs polygamist community.  They think they know which of Jeffs followers were present at the Northern Utah sightings, but it's not clear that Warren Jeffs was with them.   In Colorado City, vehicles were found matching those seen in Lehi at Cabela's.  They're registered to people close to Warren Jeffs.   It's believed that Jeffs' brother went with others into Cabela's outdoor store in a wheelchair.  They later bought fishing licenses at Strawberry Reservoir.  Gary Engles is the investigator who found the cars in Colorado City.     Read more

Private eye hoping to collar Jeffs

He believes the FBI is underestimating the threat posed by leader

By Jesse Hyde Deseret Morning News Originally published Wednesday, October 26, 2005

Craig McLachlan leans back in his soft leather chair and looks at the ceiling.   Warren Jeffs is close, he can feel it.   He rubs the stubble on his shaved head and sighs.  For 37 years, McLachlan has worked as a Salt Lake private investigator, and he's learned to trust his hunches.   Jeffs may be somewhere in Utah, McLachlan thinks, somewhere not far from here, a single-story brick office building on Salt Lake's gritty south side.   McLachlan takes out a yellow legal pad.  Objective, he writes in pencil.  Find and locate W.J.   For months, McLachlan, 58, has been plotting the overthrow of the fugitive polygamist leader, chasing leads in Florida, Texas and Arizona.     Read more

Brother Charged With Concealing Warren Jeffs

By Jacques Billeaud The Associated Press KUTV Channel 2 Originally broadcast October 31, 2005

(KUTV) The younger brother of a fugitive polygamist leader was charged in Colorado with harboring a wanted person after the younger sibling was found with $140,000 in cash and prepaid credit and cell phone cards -items that authorities say are generally used to help wanted people evade capture.   Seth Steed Jeffs, 32, of Hildale, Utah, was charged in federal court in Denver with harboring and concealing his brother, Warren Jeffs, president of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, officials said Monday.   Warren Jeffs has been a fugitive since his June indictment in Arizona on charges of arranging a marriage between a 16-year-old girl and a man who was already married.  The FBI added a charge of unlawful flight against Jeffs and joined the search for him.   When questioned by authorities, Seth Jeffs said he didn't know his brother's whereabouts and wouldn't help investigators find him, according to an affidavit filed by an FBI agent in Colorado.   "It would be stupid to tell anyone where he is because he would get caught," the affidavit quotes Seth Jeffs as saying.     Read more

Prophet's Kin Arrested

The younger brother of fundamentalist Mormon Prophet Warren Jeffs is charged with concealing Jeffs' whereabouts

By John Dougherty Phoenix New Times Originally published October 31, 2005

A courier for fugitive polygamist leader Warren Jeffs was arrested following a traffic stop in Pueblo, Colorado, carrying at least $142,000 in cash, the FBI announced on Halloween.   Seth Steed Jeffs, 32, was arraigned October 31 in U.S. District Court in Denver and charged with concealing his older brother, the prophet of the fundamentalist Mormon Church, from arrest.  The charge could bring a maximum of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.  Seth Jeffs, whose address is 760 North Maple Street, Hildale, Utah, was taken into custody by the FBI after the October 28 traffic stop and is being held pending a November 2 detention hearing at which bail is expected to be set.   Seth Jeffs' arrest marks the biggest break for law enforcement since the FBI placed fundamentalist Mormon Prophet Warren Jeffs on its most-wanted list in August.  The arrest came after a private citizen called police about a vehicle that was driving erratically on Interstate 25 near Pueblo.   The Pueblo County Sheriff's Office pulled over a late-model Ford Excursion about 3 a.m.   After questioning the occupants, deputies cited Seth Jeffs and Nathaniel Steed Allred for misdemeanor solicitation of prostitution and prostitution charges, respectively.   Allred, 27, reportedly told sheriff's deputies that Seth Jeffs paid him $5,000 to accompany him on the trip and provide sexual services.     Read more

Fugitive's brother held

Feds accuse sibling of hiding polygamist Warren Steed Jeffs

By Karen Abbott Rocky Mountain News Originally published November 1, 2005

The brother of fugitive polygamist leader Warren Steed Jeffs is in federal custody after a traffic stop near Pueblo, accused of hiding Jeffs from authorities.   In the car with Seth Steed Jeffs, 32, younger brother of Warren Jeffs, was about $142,000 in cash, seven cell phones, many letters addressed to "The Prophet" or "Warren Jeffs" and a glass container fashioned into a donation jar, with Warren Jeffs' photograph and a label reading "Pennies for the Prophet," court documents said.   The jar contained cash, prepaid credit cards and prepaid cell-phone cards, documents said.   Seth Jeffs was stopped about 3 a.m. Friday, traveling south on Interstate 25 at U.S. 50 after a citizen telephoned the sheriff's office to report a suspected drunken driver traveling in a car straddling two lanes, according to Pueblo sheriff's spokesman Steve Bryant.   A deputy responding to the tip spotted the car going slowly through a stop sign and coming almost to a stop on U.S. 50, Bryant said.  The deputy thought the driver might be lost.   The two men in the car - Seth Jeffs in the passenger seat and Nathaniel Steed Allred driving - told the deputy conflicting stories about where they were going, Bryant said.     Read more

FBI arrests Warren Jeffs' brother

Seth Jeffs charged with harboring and concealing a federal fugitive

By Patrice St. Germain The Spectrum Originally published November 1, 2005

ST. GEORGE - The FBI arrested the younger brother of Warren Jeffs,fugitive leader of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, in Pueblo, Colo., on Monday.   Seth Steed Jeffs, 32, Hildale, was charged with harboring and concealing a federal fugitive - his brother, who disappeared after being charged on June 9 by a Mohave County Arizona Grand Jury with two counts of sexual conduct with a minor and one count of conspiracy to commit sexual conduct with a minor.  On June 27, a federal arrest warrant was issued for Warren Jeffs, the leader of the polygamous church, for unlawful flight to avoid prosecution.   Seth Jeffs was first arrested last Friday after a report of a suspected intoxicated driver on Interstate 25 near U.S. 50 in Pueblo.  Also arrested was Nathaniel Steed Allred.  The two were charged with prostitution and solicitation for prostitution after Allred told a deputy that Jeffs had hired him for sexual companionship and was paid $5,000 for his sexual services.     Read more

Jeffs' Brother Not Working With Authorities

Richard Piatt Reporting KSL TV Channel 5 Originally broadcast November 1, 2005

Polygamous leader Warren Jeffs is still eluding authorities, and it doesn't look the like the legal troubles of his younger brother will help authorities in their search.   Younger brother Seth Jeffs is still behind bars in Denver, and federal agents there are still hopeful he will give them some information about where his brother is.   Seth Jeffs is downright defiant about helping authorities find his brother.  In fact, he says neither he, nor any of his brother's followers ever will.  Seth Jeffs, under arrest in Colorado for protecting his brother and for soliciting a male prostitute, tells authorities, "It would be stupid to tell anyone where he is because he would get caught."   It's as simple as that for Jeffs.  And he says the same goes for the rest of his congregation.  Investigators believe Warren is being protected from arrest by his thousands of polygamist followers and relatives.  The guessing game has stretched into several states and across borders to Mexico and Canada.     Read more

Bond set for sect leader's brother

By Alicia Caldwell Denver Post Originally published November 3, 2005

A federal magistrate has set a $25,000 property bond for Seth Jeffs, the brother of a fugitive polygamist.   Jeffs, 32, was charged Monday with hiding Warren Steed Jeffs, leader and "prophet" of a polygamist sect known as the Fundamentalist Latter Day Saints.   Sheriff's deputies found Seth Jeffs carrying $142,000 and letters addressed to "The Prophet" when he was arrested on Friday.   The judge in today's preliminary hearing in Federal Court expressed concern about Seth Jeffs as a flight risk because of his apparent ability to raise large amounts of money, but determined a property bond would be appropriate.  Jeffs doesn't own any property, but others can put it up for him.       Read more

Fugitive's brother to be set free on bail

By Karen Abbott Rocky Mountain News Originally published November 3, 2005

A man accused of hiding his brother, the fugitive leader of a polygamist sect, from authorities will be set free tomorrow if he posts a bond secured by property, a federal magistrate ruled this afternoon.   Ed Pluss, attorney for Seth Jeffs, said that the bond likely will be posted tomorrow, after he consulted with Jeffs' brother.  That brother, Lyle Jeffs, declined to comment after the hearing.   Seth Jeffs, 32, is accused of hiding his older brother, Warren Jeffs, who is the president of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.  The sect split from the traditional Mormon church in the late 1890s after Mormons renounced polygamy Warren Jeffs is wanted in Arizona on charges of felony sexual child abuse for allegedly arranging a marriage between a 16-year-old girl and an older married man in 2002.   Prosecutors, who have charged Seth Jeffs with harboring a fugitive, a federal felony, had asked Colorado U.S. Magistrate Judge Craig Shaffer to order him kept behind bars while the case is pending against him.   Shaffer ruled today that enough evidence exists to try Seth Jeffs.     Read more

Polygamist leader's brother held for trial

By Judith Kohler The Associated Press The Daily Sentinel - Grand Junction, Colorado Originally published November 3, 2005

DENVER — A federal judge ruled Thursday that there is enough evidence to pursue charges against Seth Steed Jeffs, who's accused of harboring his brother and fugitive polygamist leader, Warren Jeffs.   The formal charges came a week after sheriff's deputies arrested Seth Jeffs, 32, of Hildale, Utah, during a traffic stop in Colorado and seized $142,000 in cash, thousands of dollars in prepaid debit cards and his older brother's personal records and correspondence.   "He's part of a chain that is purposefully trying to conceal Warren Jeffs," federal prosecutor Philip Brimmer said of the defendant.   "He doesn't have to be all of that chain.  He is an important link to that chain."   Jeffs' attorney, Ed Pluss, argued that his client was merely taking the money and documents to Texas to a bishop of the Leaders of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which the elder Jeffs heads.   Magistrate Judge Craig Shaffer sided with prosecutors, saying they had probable cause to pursue a federal indictment against Jeffs.     Read more

U.S. judge grants bail to brother of sought polygamist

Seth Jeffs is accused of helping his brother avoid arrest. The judge denied claims he is a flight risk.

By Alicia Caldwell Denver Post Originally published November 4, 2005

A federal magistrate judge on Thursday set bail for a man accused of helping his brother, a polygamous religious leader accused of sex with a minor, evade a nationwide manhunt.   Prosecutors argued that Seth Jeffs, brother of Warren Jeffs, was a flight risk because of his ready access to large amounts of cash and his status with tightknit polygamous communities in Mexico and Canada.   Despite concerns that Seth Jeffs might disappear in much the same fashion his brother has, U.S. Magistrate Judge Craig Shaffer set a $25,000 property bail in the case.   "I truly do not believe the defendant should be penalized or it should work against this defendant that he is a member of a particular religious community," Shaffer said.   Seth Jeffs belongs to the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, which broke away from mainstream Mormonism in 1890.  Authorities have been searching for Warren Jeffs, the leader of the fundamentalist church, since June.     Read more

Seth Jeffs to spend weekend behind bars

Rocky Mountain News rockymountainnews.com Originally published November 5, 2005

Seth Jeffs, accused of hiding his fugitive brother from authorities, will spend the weekend in jail.   Federal authorities said Jeffs, 32, was unable to get paperwork in order to post a $25,000 property bond, as his lawyer had expected on Thursday.   Jeffs' older brother, Warren Jeffs, is the leader of a polygamist sect called the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.

FLDS' Jeffs living well on the run

Followers finance polygamist leader

By Mark Shaffer Arizona Republic - Flagstaff Bureau Originally published November 7, 2005

He's been stripped from the board that controls more than $100 million of property in Colorado City and neighboring Hildale, Utah, and has been kept on the run by FBI agents.   But don't think that Warren Jeffs, the fugitive leader of the country's largest polygamist sect, isn't living high on the hog.   He appears to be living a lavish underground lifestyle fueled by tens of thousands of dollars his followers have funneled through his immediate family.  And many of his adult male followers seem to have followed his admonition to give him $1,000 a month, in addition to their normal church tithes.   Jeffs, 49, who was indicted by a Mohave County grand jury in June on charges of sexual misconduct for marrying underage women to much older men, also is likely spending the majority of his time in isolated parts of west Texas and the Nevada-Utah border as a nationwide manhunt continues, state and federal law enforcement sources say.   The arrest last week of Jeffs' brother, Seth Steed Jeffs, near Pueblo, Colo., offered a revealing glimpse into Warren Jeffs' life on the lam.     Read more

Brother Of Fugitive Polygamist Due In Colorado Court

Seth Jeffs Found With Items That Link To Fugitive Brother

Denver's ABC 7 TheDenverChannel.com Originally broadcast November 7, 2005

DENVER -- The brother of fugitive polygamist leader Warren Jeffs is due for a detention hearing in Denver Monday on charges he harbored his brother.   Seth Jeffs, 32, of Hildale, Utah, was arrested in Pueblo County during a traffic stop last month with $142,000 in cash and $7,000 in prepaid credit and cell phone cards, plus his older brother's personal records and correspondence.   Authorities said those items can be used to evade capture, but Seth Jeffs' lawyer says his client was just taking the items to a bishop of the church his brother heads.   Authorities also found several hundred letters addressed to Warren from church members "relating to a variety of personal and FLDS matters," according to the arrest affidavit.  Also found in the car was a donation jar bearing a photo of the church leader and a label that read: "Pennies for the Prophet," authorities said.   Seth Jeffs also is accused of solicitation for prostitution because he was arrested during a traffic stop with Nathaniel Steed Allred, who told officers Jeffs paid him $5,000 for "sexual services."  Allred is accused of prostitution.

Brother Of Fugitive Polygamist Staying In Denver

The Associated Press CBS 4 - Denver Originally broadcast November 7, 2005

DENVER - The brother of a fugitive polygamist leader was back in federal custody in Denver Monday.   A paperwork conflict concerning the man's bond caused the move back to Denver.   Seth Steed Jeffs, 32, of Hildale, Utah was charged with harboring and concealing his brother, Warren, president of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.   Seth Jeffs took out a $25,000 lien on some property to make bond, but Magistrate Judge Craig Shaffer said he won't release Jeffs until a property lien is filed.   Officials refused to accept documents by fax.   Authorities said 49-year-old Warren Jeffs has eluded capture since June.   A grand jury indicted him in Arizona for allegedly arranging marriage between a 16-year-old girl, and a man already married.   His church has property in Colorado City, Arizona; Utah and Texas plus members in Canada and Mexico.   Seth Jeffs stood mute in court.  If his bond is approved, he must surrender his passport and limit his travels to Utah, Colorado and Mohave County, Arizona.   He's scheduled for arraignment Nov 17.

Arizona AG: Fugitive polygamist a regular visitor to Texas ranch

The Associated Press Denton Record-Chronicle - Denton, Texas Originally published November 7, 2005

A fugitive polygamist leader has been a regular visitor to his sect's ranch in Texas since his indictment earlier this year on sexual misconduct charges, Arizona's attorney general says.   "He appears to come and go with impunity there," said Attorney General Terry Goddard.  He would not elaborate.   Authorities have been seeking Warren Jeffs since he was indicted by a Mohave County grand jury in June on charges of sexual misconduct for marrying underage women to much older men.   His brother, Seth Steed Jeffs, was arrested near Pueblo, Colo. last week and is being detained on local prostitution-related charges and a federal count of concealing a person from arrest, namely Warren Jeffs.   Goddard said he believes Warren Jeffs could be captured in short order in Texas, where Jeffs' sect, the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, is establishing a community about 160 miles northwest of San Antonio.  The sect has no connection with the mainstream Mormon Church, which banned polygamy in the late 1800s.   "I don't want to be critical but, frankly, I don't think they've been as aggressive as I would like.  This needs to be a multistate effort," Goddard said.     Read more

Polygamist sect figure released on bond

By Karen Abbott Rocky Mountain News Originally published November 7, 2005

A man accused of hiding his fugitive polygamist brother from authorities was expected to be freed this afternoon after he posted a $25,000 property bond in Colorado U.S. District Court.   Seth Jeffs, 32, of Hildale, Utah, posted the bond hours after a morning hearing at which his lawyer, Ed Pluss, and Colorado U.S. Magistrate Judge Craig Shaffer said they expected paperwork delays to postpone Jeffs' release for several days.   Prosecutors had asked Shaffer last week to keep Jeffs behind bars while the case is pending against him, but Shaffer declined.   Jeffs' older brother, Warren Jeffs, is the leader of a polygamist sect called the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.  The sect split from the traditional Mormon church in the late 1890s after Mormons renounced polygamy.   Warren Jeffs is wanted in Arizona on charges of felony sexual abuse of a child.     Read more

Authorities Stop Vans In Search For Warren Jeffs

The Associated Press KUTV Channel 2 Originally published November 12, 2005

ST. GEORGE, Utah A tip to police prompted officers to pull over a pair of passenger vans driving near here Friday to look for fugitive Warren Jeffs, the fugitive leader of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.   Jeffs, 49, is wanted by Arizona authorities on two counts of sexual assault on a minor and one count of conspiracy to commit sexual conduct on a minor.  He is also charged with unlawful flight to avoid prosecution, a federal offense.   He has not been seen publicly in more than a year and has been considered a fugitive by authorities since June.   A reward of $10,000 for information leading to Jeffs' arrest is being offered by the attorneys general of Utah and Arizona.   On Friday an anonymous tipster told the Iron County Sheriff's Office Jeffs might be at home in Beryl, Utah, about 65 miles north of St. George.     Read more

Did Jeffs get away?

Authorities stop vans; fugitive polygamist leader isn't found

By Patrice St. Germain The Spectrum Originally published November 12, 2005

ST. GEORGE - Following up on an anonymous tip from the public that fugitive Warren Jeffs had been sighted, the Iron County Sheriff's Office responded Friday afternoon to a remote area in Beryl Valley.   The tip sent law enforcement officers from both Iron and Washington counties on a search for two vans that were eventually stopped Friday afternoon on Red Hills Parkway, just off state Road 18 in St. George.  Investigators said Friday night that Jeffs was not in either van and is still on the loose.   Jeffs, the leader of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, was indicted June 9 by a grand jury in Mohave County, Ariz., on two counts of sexual assault on a minor and one count of conspiracy to commit sexual conduct on a minor.  Jeffs is also charged with unlawful flight to avoid prosecution, a federal offense.  Jeffs has been considered a fugitive from justice since June 27.   Iron County Sheriff Mark Gower said his deputies did not approach the Beryl Valley home because deputies did not have probable cause.     Read more

FUGITIVE HUNT

A compound in Texas becomes a focal point as Arizona officials say the leader of polygamous sect is hiding there

By Thomas Korosec Houston Chronicle Originally published November 14, 2005

With 1,700 hilly acres and a gate accessible from a maze of back roads, the Yearn for Zion Ranch could be an ideal hide-out.   Whether the West Texas compound is being used by polygamous sect leader Warren Jeffs during his five-month flight from sexual misconduct charges became a contentious issue last week when Arizona officials suggested Jeffs could be captured there in short order.   The sheriff in Schleicher County, where the ranch is located, disputes the claim, saying there is nothing to indicate that Jeffs has been to the ranch since he became a fugitive in June.   "The attorney general is uninformed," said Sheriff David Doran, referring to Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard, who earlier said he had "good information" that Jeffs "comes and goes with impunity" from the Texas ranch.     Read more

Jeffs indicted as brother's keeper

DenverPost.com Originally published November 16, 2005

The brother of a fugitive polygamist cult leader has been indicted by a federal grand jury for harboring him.   Seth Steed Jeffs, 32, was indicted late Tuesday on a single count of helping his brother, Warren Steed Jeffs, hide from law enforcement.   Warren Jeffs is the leader and "prophet" of a polygamous sect known as the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints ("FLDS").   This group separated from mainstream Mormonism in 1890 when the Mormon Church denounced polygamy.   He's been the subject of a nationwide manhunt since June, accused of sexual conduct with a minor.   Seth Jeffs' car was stopped in Pueblo County on October 28, after sheriff's officers received a report about a suspected drunk driver.  The man he was with, Nathaniel Steed Allred, admitted to deputies he was hired by Seth Jeffs for sexual companionship.     Read more

Polygamist's Brother Indicted By Grand Jury

The Associated Press CBS Channel 4 - Denver Originally broadcast November 16, 2005

(AP) DENVER - A federal grand jury indicted the brother of fugitive polygamist sect leader Warren Steed Jeffs on a charge of concealing him, prosecutors said Wednesday.   The one-count indictment against Seth Steed Jeffs, 32, of Hildale, Utah, formalizes a charge prosecutors filed Oct. 31, said Jeff Dorschner, spokesman for the U.S. attorney's office in Denver.   Seth Jeffs was arrested after a traffic stop Oct. 28 in Pueblo County.  Authorities said he had nearly $142,000 in cash, about $7,000 worth of prepaid debit and phone cards and Warren Jeffs' personal papers in his SUV.   Prosecutors accused Seth Jeffs of providing the means for Warren Jeffs, 49, to remain on the run.   Seth Jeffs is free on $25,000 bond and scheduled to appear before a federal magistrate judge in Denver on Thursday, Dorschner said.   If convicted, he faces up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.     Read more

Criminal Law - FBI & US Attorney indict man for harboring fugitive

US Attorney Law Fuel Press Release LawFuel.com Originally published November 16, 2005

DENVER - LAWFUEL - The Law News Network - Bill Leone, United States Attorney for the District of Colorado, and Richard C. Powers, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Denver Office, announced that SETH STEED JEFFS, age 32, of Hildale, Utah, was indicted by a federal grand jury for harboring and concealing Warren Jeffs from arrest/aiding and abetting.  The one count indictment was returned late yesterday.   SETH JEFFS, who is free on a $25,000 property bond, is scheduled to appear in U.S. District Court in Denver on Thursday, November 17, 2005 at 1:30 p.m. before a U.S. Magistrate Judge for arraignment on the indictment.  He was originally charged by Criminal Complaint on October 31, 2005.  The indictment formalizes the criminal charges.     Read more

Polygamist's brother pleads not guilty to harboring fugitive

By Jon Sarche Associated Press writer The Waco Tribune-Herald - Waco, Texas Originally published November 17, 2005

DENVER - The brother of fugitive polygamist sect leader Warren Steed Jeffs pleaded not guilty Thursday to a charge of helping him avoid arrest.   Seth Steed Jeffs, 32, of Hildale, Utah, faces one federal count of concealing his brother.  He said nothing during the brief hearing, allowing his attorney to enter the plea, and he declined to comment afterward.  His attorney, Daniel Smith, also declined to comment.   Seth Jeffs is free on $25,000 bond.   If convicted, he faces up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.  A judge scheduled a Jan. 9 trial date.   He was arrested after a traffic stop Oct. 28 in Pueblo County, south of Denver.  Authorities said he had nearly $142,000 in cash, about $7,000 worth of prepaid debit and phone cards and Warren Jeffs' personal papers in his SUV.   Prosecutors accused Seth Jeffs of providing the means for his brother to remain on the run.     Read more

Some fear a Branch Davidian fate for polygamy clan

By Valerie Richardson The Washington Times Originally published November 27, 2005

DENVER -- Pueblo County sheriff's deputies pulled over a Ford Excursion weaving on U.S. Highway 50 last month and found more than a suspected drunken driver.   In the back of the vehicle was Seth Steed Jeffs, younger brother of Warren Steed Jeffs, the iron-fisted leader of the Jeffs' polygamy clan wanted by state and federal authorities for purportedly arranging the marriages of underage girls to older, married men.   With Mr. Jeffs were items likely intended for his brother, including $142,000 in cash in envelopes addressed to the fugitive; prepaid phone cards; debit cards; seven cell phones; and a donation jar with Warren Jeffs' photo labeled "Pennies for the Prophet."   It was a huge break in the manhunt for Warren Jeffs, 49, who disappeared months before an Arizona grand jury indicted him in June on charges of sexual misconduct with a minor.     Read more

Fourth Amendment doesn't search just anyone

Opinion The Spectrum Originally published December 9, 2005

This letter is in response to Ed Kociela's column on Nov. 19 titled "Religion no excuse for crimes."  In this column, Mr. Kociela made a stab at Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff for not prosecuting the estimated 40,000 polygamists in Utah and a county sheriff that refused to knock on a door where it was thought Warren Jeffs was hiding because of a lack of probable cause.   Mr. Kociela, for reasons unknown, did not name that sheriff, but I will.   My name is Sheriff Mark Gower of Iron County, the sheriff made reference to in this column.  I will now give you the other side of the story as to why Iron County deputies did not venture onto private property and attempt to search a home without probable cause.   On the day in question, Nov. 11, the Cedar City public safety dispatch center received an anonymous phone call from a person who would not identify who they were.  This caller reported that several vans had pulled into an address in western Iron County and several people in black suits had unloaded out of the vans.  This caller never saw Warren Jeffs, but thought there might be a chance he was in one of the vans.  The information provided by this caller was unreliable and in no way it could be followed up on or investigated to develop probable cause for a search warrant of the home and property.     Read more

Polygamist prophet on the lam in B.C.?

Sect leader wanted by U.S. authorities

By Mark Hume The Globe and Mail - Canada Originally published Friday, December 9, 2005

VANCOUVER -- When U.S. law enforcement authorities pulled over a van being driven erratically on Interstate 25 near Pueblo, Colo., last month, they got an intriguing glimpse into the hidden world of Warren Jeffs -- a fugitive and self-styled prophet of a polygamist sect with ties to Canada.   In the van was Mr. Jeffs's younger brother, Seth Steed Jeffs, 32, who was carrying with him $142,000 (U.S.) in cash, seven cellphones, prepaid phone cards, credit cards and several hundred letters addressed to Warren Jeffs from loyal followers of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.   The sect, which practises polygamy, has an estimated 6,000 to 10,000 members with property in Arizona, Utah, Texas, Canada and Mexico.  About 1,000 of those members live in Bountiful, near Creston, in southeastern B.C.   Seth Jeffs, detained on a federal count of concealing a person from arrest, denied knowing his brother's whereabouts and said he was delivering the cash and documents to organization leaders in Texas.   Police, however, suspected that what they had really come across was a supply run that was providing just a small part of the funds being made available to Mr. Jeffs during his life as a fugitive from justice.   They believe he is being shuttled from one polygamous sect to another -- and now may be hiding somewhere in B.C.     Read more

Another Possible Sighting of FLDS Leader Warren Jeffs

KSL NewsRadio KSL.com Originally broadcast December 15, 2005

SALT LAKE CITY (KSL News Services) – Authorities are looking into another possible sighting of fugitive polygamous leader Warren Jeffs.   The potential sighting comes as sightings of the FLDS church leader are becoming few and far between.   This time, Jeffs may have been spotted in Spring City near the central Utah town of Ephraim.  FBI Special Agent Brent Robbins says they're looking into it but haven't been able to catch Jeffs.  He says Jeffs has many people helping him stay on the run.   Jeffs is wanted on charges related to arranging child bride marriages.

$60,000 reward offered for polygamist prophet's arrest

By Mike Watkiss / 3TV reporter Phoenix News KTVK Originally broadcast January 17, 2006

The Federal Bureau of Investigation and Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard announced Tuesday that the reward leading to the arrest and conviction of polygamist leader Warren Steed Jeffs has been bumped up to $60,000.   Assistant Special Agent in charge D. Shepard Rabbiner and Goddard are expected to make the announcement at a 2 p.m. news conference.   Jeffs is the leader of thousands of practicing polygamists living in Colorado City, Ariz., and Hildale, Utah.   Last summer the Attorney General's Office offered a $10,000 reward.   For more details on this story, watch "Good Evening Arizona."

FBI adds $50,000 to reward in hunt for FLDS leader

By Patrice St. Germain The Spectrum Originally published January 18, 2006

ST. GEORGE -The FBI has raised the stakes in its hunt for polygamist leader Warren Jeffs.   Tuesday, the agency added $50,000 to the reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the self-proclaimed prophet of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, which is based in the twin cities of Hildale and Colorado City, Ariz.   In July, the Utah and Arizona attorney's general banded together to offer a $10,000 reward for information leading to Jeffs' arrest, but despite several reported Jeffs sightings - including one in November in Southern Utah - the 49-year-old FLDS leader has remained elusive.   Gary Engels, an investigator for the Mohave County Attorney who has maintained an office in Colorado City for the last 14 months, said the increased reward is a step in the right direction, but said it still isn't enough money.   "It (the reward) would have to be a life-changing amount of money," Engels said.  "For the most zealous, this is their salvation, their prophet, and no amount of money is going to work."     Read more

FBI ups rewards for polygamous leader to $50,000

The Associated Press Mainichi Daily News - Japan Originally published January 18, 2006

PHOENIX -- The FBI has raised the reward for fugitive polygamous leader Warren Jeffs to $50,000 in hopes of shaking loose information that will lead to his arrest.   The FBI reward announced Tuesday is for Jeffs' capture and conviction.  It is in addition to a $10,000 reward for information leading to Jeffs' arrest already offered by the attorneys general of Utah and Arizona.   "We're hoping that the additional reward money will motivate some individual who has yet to come forward to do so," said FBI Special Agent Deborah McCarley.   Jeffs heads the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, centered in Colorado City and nearby Hildale, Utah.  Most of the sect's estimated 10,000 followers live there, but the church also has property in other states and Canada.     Read more

How much is that criminal worth?

Bounty hunter says current reward not enough to search for Warren Jeffs

By Patrice St. Germain The Spectrum Originally published January 19, 2006

With a $50,000 reward offered by the FBI for the arrest and conviction of Warren Jeffs, who made the agency's fugitive list in August, the self-proclaimed prophet of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints joins another group of not only wanted fugitives, but those with rewards.   But the money - even with $60,000 now at stake, which includes $10,000 put up by the attorneys general of Utah and Arizona - isn't enough to make local private investigator, bail bondsman and bounty hunter Sam Brower give up his other cases to search for Jeffs.   Brower points out that Jeffs hasn't jumped bail, so unless he is found and convicted, a person may not get any money other than the $10,000 offered by the Utah and Arizona attorneys general.   Also, those who have jumped bail don't have the same constitutional rights that are protecting Jeffs.   "Bounty hunters have the rights to enter a residence and go beyond the constitutional protection that most are protected by," Brower said.  "When you jump bail, you are no longer protected."   Brower said Jeffs has something that most bail jumpers don't have - vast funds and resources.     Read more

Polygamist on the lam cashing in on friends' help

Leads still slim after brother's Pueblo capture

By Dave Curtin Denver Post Originally published January 20, 2006

In the six months since fugitive polygamist leader Warren Jeffs was indicted by a grand jury for arranging an underage marriage, there have been few clues to his whereabouts.   The best hint as to how he's living on the lam came in October 2005 when his brother, Seth, was pulled over by Pueblo County sheriff's deputies near Interstate 25 and U.S. 50.   Seth Jeffs' vehicle was reportedly full of letters addressed to Warren Jeffs, $142,000 in cash and prepaid credit cards and cellphones.   Seth Jeffs, 32, is to stand trial in U.S. District Court in Denver for harboring a fugitive.  Warren Jeffs continues to elude a nationwide manhunt.   "After the arrest in Colorado I thought we were close.  I thought that would be our shoehorn to (Warren Jeffs)," said Brent Robbins, an FBI special agent in Salt Lake City.  "I think it's safe to say he went farther underground."     Read more

Polygamous Prophet Update

By Jordan Smith The Austin Chronicle Originally published February 2, 2006

In an attempt to entice reticent tipsters, the FBI is now offering $50,000 in reward money for information leading to the arrest and conviction of fugitive fundamentalist Mormon "prophet" Warren Jeffs, leader of polygamist breakaway Mormon sect the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  Jeffs has been on the lam for over six months, dodging Arizona state felony charges in connection with arranging marriages between teen girls and older, married men, and a federal count of unlawful flight to avoid prosecution.  Between the federal booty and state reward offerings, there is now a total of $60K in reward money being offered for Jeffs' capture.  Meanwhile, last month federal authorities took a trip to the twin towns of Colorado City, Ariz., and Hildale, Utah – which, for nearly 100 years, have been the de facto headquarters for the church – to deliver subpoenas to various church members whom they believe may have information regarding Jeffs' whereabouts.     Read more

Fugitives

'Prophet' Still On the Run, but Authorities Closing in on Sect

Intelligence Report Winter 2005 Southern Poverty Law Center - Montgomery, AL Originally published February 2, 2006

At 3 a.m. on Oct. 28, sheriff's deputies in Pueblo County, Colo., pulled over a suspicious Ford Excursion and found a lot more than the drunken driver they expected.  Reclining on a mattress in the back was Seth Jeffs, the younger brother of fugitive "prophet" Warren Jeffs, leader of a controversial polygamist sect.   An Arizona warrant for the elder Jeffs was issued last June on felony charges of conspiracy and sexual conduct with a minor, relating to his alleged role in forcing underage girls to marry much older men who typically already had wives.  In August, the FBI said that he was among the agency's 20 most-wanted fugitives.   Warren Jeffs heads the Fundamentalist Latter Day Saints (FLDS), a group with an estimated 10,000 followers that has been strongly rejected by the mainstream Mormon church.   Jeffs' theology includes racist descriptions of blacks, and his sect is considered a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center.     Read more

No sign of fugitive cult leader at West Texas temple and ranch

By Michael Graczyk The Associated Press Dallas/Fort Worth Star-Telegram Originally published February 18, 2006

ELDORADO, Texas - More than a year after a polygamist cult began building a compound in West Texas, the number of people living there and the whereabouts of the group's elusive leader remain a mystery to those outside the ranch's locked gates.   Warren Jeffs, 50, the "prophet" of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, is wanted by the FBI and authorities in Utah and Arizona on a variety of charges, including sexual conduct with a minor and unlawful flight to avoid prosecution.   The former accountant and private school teacher has been on the FBI's "Most Wanted Fugitive" list since June, and the reward for information leading to his arrest grew to $60,000 last month.   But despite reported sightings the length of North America - Jeffs has been rumored everywhere from Canada to Mexico - he's managed to elude authorities, and the new compound in Texas seems like a reasonable hiding place.     Read more

Pueblo traffic stop at issue in court

Seth Jeffs accused of hiding brother who leads sect

By Karen Abbott Rocky Mountain News Originally published February 22, 2006

A Pueblo sheriff's deputy suspected within two minutes of stopping Seth Jeffs and his cousin in the wee hours of an October morning that something more was going on than erratic driving, he testified Tuesday.   Deputy Eric Medina said he first thought Jeffs' cousin might be driving under the influence of drugs, then became suspicious that the two men were smuggling narcotics or stolen audio equipment.   "I guarantee you, they're smugglers," Medina told fellow officers on a videotape of the traffic stop played in federal court Tuesday.   Jeffs is accused of hiding his fugitive brother, polygamist leader Warren Jeffs, from authorities.   Jeffs' lawyer, Daniel Smith, wants Colorado U.S. District Judge Robert Blackburn to bar the government from using Jeffs' incriminating statements and items taken from his vehicle as evidence.     Read more

Report: Enclave of polygamist sect is found in South Dakota

The Associated Press KGBT Channel 4 - Harlingen, Texas Originally published March 9, 2006

ELDORADO, Texas A West Texas newspaper says another outpost of the polygamous sect headed by fugitive Warren Jeffs has been found in South Dakota.   The discovery of the 100-acre site at Pringle, South Dakota, was reported by The Eldorado Success in its online edition.   The Success received anonymous e-mail and phone tips about the property and the people who bought, and found ties to the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.   Jeffs is considered a prophet by his followers.  He's is wanted on a federal charge of unlawful flight to avoid prosecution on an Arizona charge that he arranged a plural marriage between a 16-year-old girl and an older man.   It has been thought that he has traveled among the church's various properties, hiding out.   The sect is headquartered in the twin towns of Colorado City, Arizona, and Hildale, Utah.   It also has long had an enclave in British Columbia and in recent years has established outposts in Colorado, Nevada and on a West Texas ranch near Eldorado. ___ Information from: The Eldorado Success, http://www.myeldorado.net/

Do FLDS have U.S. network of safe houses?

'I think they're scattered all over,' investigator says

By Ben Winslow Deseret Morning News Originally published Friday, March 10, 2006

A compound of the Fundamentalist LDS Church recently discovered in South Dakota may be part of a network of safe houses scattered across the country that help keep fugitive polygamous leader Warren Jeffs from being apprehended.   That's according to a private investigator who helped find the polygamous enclave near Pringle, which is nestled in the Black Hills southwest of Rapid City.  Sam Brower has been probing the FLDS group for years on behalf of former members who are suing Jeffs.   "I think they're scattered all over," Brower said Thursday.  "Some may be as small as just one or two houses and others larger compounds like this.   I think he has a network of safehouses that he can cruise around to."   In fact, Jeffs may have been spotted last year on the property.     Read more

Jeffs faces Washington County charges

Judge signs $500,000 cash-only warrant

The Spectrum Originally published April 6, 2006

ST. GEORGE — The Washington County Attorney has filed charges against Warren Jeffs, the fugitive leader of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.   During a press conference that concluded shortly after 3 p.m., Washington County Attorney Brock Belnap charged Jeffs with two counts of rape as an accomplice, a first-degree felony.  Fifth District Court Judge James E. Shumate signed a $500,000 cash-only warrant for Jeffs’ arrest.   Jeffs has been on the run since an arrest warrant was issued by the Superior Court of the State of Arizona, Mohave County, on June 9, 2005.  That warrant charges him with two counts of sexual assault on a minor on or about March 28 or 30, 2002, and on or between July 1 and Dec. 31, 2002; and one count of conspiracy to commit sexual conduct on a minor.   Jeffs also faces charges of unlawful flight to avoid prosecution.  A federal warrant on this charge was issued on June 27, 2005.   For more, please see tomorrow's edition of The Spectrum & Daily News.

Warren Jeffs charged

By Ben Winslow Deseret Morning News Originally published Thursday, April 6, 2006

Washington County prosecutors have filed a pair of first-degree felony rape as an accomplice charges against Warren Jeffs, the fugitive leader of the Fundamentalist LDS Church.   The charges were filed late Wednesday in St. George's 5th District Court.   The Washington County Attorney declined to comment on the charges until a news conference scheduled for 2 p.m. today.   According to an arrest warrant and an affidavit obtained by the Deseret Morning News, the Washington County Sheriff's Office began investigating Jeffs, who is also wanted on sexual misconduct charges in Arizona, from January to March 2006 for arranging a "spiritual" marriage.   The FLDS Church practices polygamy, but the court documents do not explicitly state if the marriage was polygamous.   A woman known only in court papers as "Jane Doe IV" claims that when she was between 14 to 18-years-old, religious leaders in the FLDS Church told her that God revealed she was to enter into a spiritual marriage with a man — known in court papers as "John Doe IV" — more than three years her age.  The documents did not specify the ages of either party.   The court papers say Jane met with Warren Jeffs and expressed concerns.   "She felt like she was too young to marry," deputies wrote in the affidavit.  "Jeffs told Jane that it was her spiritual duty to submit to the marriage and that the marriage arrangement was 'from God.' "     Read more

New Charges Filed Against Warren Jeffs

By Brent Hunsaker ABC 4 Originally broadcast April 6, 2006

Warren Jeffs, the leader of a large polygamist sect, is now a state fugitive as well as a federal one.  Jeffs, who has been hiding from the law for over a year, had new charges filed against him Thursday.  For the first time, Utah has made a criminal complaint against the man whose followers revere him as a a prophet.   He had already been federally charged for child rape several months ago, as well as for, in some cases, personally conducting, marriages of underage girls to older men; some of whom were three times as old as their young "spiritual wives."   Now, the state of Utah has charged him with two counts of being an accomplice in the rape of a child.  The charges stem from a case of one particular underage marriage.  Details are meager, but authorities say the victim is between the age of 14 to 18.   The charges were announced Thursday afternoon in Washington County.   The area had been home to a thriving polygamist community on the Utah-Arizona border until Jeffs began moving his believers to other states.   The Hilldale area is now tetering on the edge of bankruptcy.  Jeffs went into hiding as soon as he was first charged.     Read more

2 arrested in grand jury probe of FLDS Church

By Ben Winslow Deseret Morning News Originally published Thursday, April 13, 2006

The arrests of two prominent members of the Fundamentalist LDS Church has revealed the existence of a federal grand jury investigation — presumably into the polygamous church and its fugitive leader Warren Jeffs — the Deseret Morning News has learned.   James Allred, 58, and Mica Barlow, 36, were subpoenaed to testify before the federal grand jury in Phoenix, Ariz., on April 5.   "They were subpoenaed to appear and testify in front of the grand jury," said Dennis Harkins, a deputy U.S. Marshal in Phoenix.  "They didn't do that so they were given a contempt of court warrant to self-surrender."   A federal judge issued bench warrants for their arrests on contempt of court charges.  Allred and Barlow surrendered on April 6 at the U.S. Marshal's Office inside the federal courthouse in Phoenix, Harkins said.   "They were booked in on contempt of court and are sitting in the facility until they decide to talk or until the judge releases them," he said Wednesday.  The men are currently in a private prison that contracts with federal authorities in Florence, Ariz.   U.S. Marshals would not say any more about the case.  There is no public record on the arrests or the warrants issued for Allred or Barlow in U.S. District Court in Arizona.     Read more

Videotape reveals Jeffs' mannerisms

4-hour record provided to News may help in search for the FLDS leader

By Ben Winslow Deseret Morning News Originally published Thursday, April 13, 2006

To the world outside the Fundamentalist LDS Church, he has been known only as the fugitive polygamous prophet.  The photographs show a warm, patriarchal smile betraying what authorities contend is Warren Jeffs' cruel legacy of child bride marriages, the dissolution of families, the excommunications and the bleeding of a community's financial resources.   Now, law enforcement want a purported videotape of Jeffs that shows him moving about as he speaks.   The Deseret Morning News has obtained a copy of rare videotape of fugitive Fundamentalist LDS Church leader Warren Jeffs.   "It's the first video I've heard of," Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff said Wednesday.  "I've heard of lots of (audio) tape recordings, but not a video of him."   The video, which is nearly four hours long, was provided to the Deseret Morning News by a source who wished to remain anonymous because of family who remain within the FLDS Church.   The source contacted a reporter hoping to publicize Jeffs' moving images and assist police in apprehending the polygamist leader who is on the FBI's Most Wanted List.     Read more

Video Tape Provides Rare Glimpse of Warren Jeffs

John Hollenhorst Reporting KSL-TV Channel 5 Originally broadcast April 13, 2006

Warren Jeffs as Groucho Marx !?!? It's the first videotape ever to surface, showing the polygamist leader who's been on the FBI's Most Wanted list for nearly a year.  The video may not bring authorities any closer to arresting the fugitive polygamist leader, but it offers a rare glimpse into the lives of Warren Jeffs and his followers.   The video was shot in 1993.  A disgruntled former follower turned it over to the Deseret Morning News.  He hopes that by displaying Jeffs' personality and mannerisms, the video might help authorities track him down.   It's a stage show in 1993, with a little known MC, slated to become a famous fugitive.   Warren Jeffs, 1993: "Our next skit is called, 'The cross to the best.'"   Warren Jeffs is in a room packed with kids and parents, believers in the FLDS Church.   Rulon Jeffs was FLDS prophet then, his son Warren was headmaster of Alta Academy, where the video was shot.   The room where the performance was held still exists.  The Alta Academy building is still in Sandy, at the mouth of Little Cottonwood Canyon.  The Jeffs vacated the compound in 2001 after predicting a nuclear explosion or terrorist attack during the Olympics.     Read more

Feds turn up the heat on Jeffs

Prosecutors charge him with unlawful flight

By Ben Winslow Deseret Morning News Originally published Saturday, April 29, 2006

Federal prosecutors in Utah have turned up the heat on finding fugitive polygamist leader Warren Jeffs.   The U.S. Attorney for Utah has charged Jeffs with a single count of unlawful flight to avoid prosecution, accusing him of fleeing the state to avoid facing charges in St. George for rape as an accomplice.  Washington County prosecutors filed the first-degree felony counts against Jeffs earlier this month, accusing the Fundamentalist LDS Church leader of forcing a teenage girl into a polygamous marriage and threatening her with damnation if she left.   On Wednesday, a federal magistrate in Cedar City signed a warrant for Jeffs' arrest.   "Local law enforcement and the FBI asked us to get this," U.S. Attorney for Utah spokeswoman Melodie Rydalch said Thursday.   "It's another tool for law enforcement to help get Mr. Jeffs."   Jeffs is facing a similar federal warrant in Arizona.   FBI special agent Deborah McCarley said the two federal charges will allow more resources to be allocated in searching for Jeffs.   "We are still proactively looking for him," she said from the FBI's office in Phoenix on Thursday.  "We are still taking in leads from the community."     Read more

Brother of polygamy sect leader scheduled to appear in court

The Associated Press KOLD News 13 - Tucson Originally broadcast May 1, 2006

DENVER The brother of polygamist church leader Warren Jeffs is scheduled to appear today in a Denver federal courtroom for a change of plea hearing.   Court documents show 32-year-old Seth Jeffs had pleaded innocent after being indicted in November for allegedly providing the means for his fugitive brother to remain in hiding.   Jeffs was arrested on October 28th, 2005 for alleged prostitution and solicitation during a traffic stop near Pueblo.   Warren Jeffs is the leader of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, which Is based in the neighboring cities of Hildale, Utah, and Colorado City, Arizona.  He has been considered a federal fugitive since June 2005, after authorities in Arizona charged him with allegedly arranging marriages between underage girls and older men who already were married.

Brother pleads guilty to harboring polygamist leader

By Howard Pankratz Denver Post Originally published May 1, 2006

The brother of fugitive Mormon polygamist Warren Jeffs pleaded guilty today in Denver to hiding the rebel religious leader.   Seth Steed Jeffs, 33, who was arrested in Pueblo last October, will be sentenced on July 14 for harboring a fugitive.   Although he could face up to five years in prison, federal advisory sentencing guidelines suggest a sentence from no time to seven months.   According to the plea agreement filed in federal court, Seth Jeffs admitted to FBI agents that he was delivering more than $142,000 to the Eldorado, Texas, facility of the Fundamentalist Latter Day Saints (FLDS) so his brother could "do what he wants to do."   Jeffs, the younger brother of Warren, was stopped by the Pueblo County deputies following reports of a car being driven erratically on Interstate 25.   Inside Seth Jeffs' car, investigators found the $142,000, and numerous documents addressed to "The Prophet," or "Warren Jeffs."   Also found was a donation jar and a label which read: "Pennies for the prophet."   In the jar was money and several envelopes containing pre-paid credit cards and pre-paid cellular phone cards.  Seven cellular phones were also found.   During a second search of the vehicle, authorities recovered several hundred letters addressed to Warren Jeffs.     Read more

Polygamist's Younger Brother Pleads Guilty

By Don Mitchell The Associated Press The Washington Post Originally published Tuesday, May 2, 2006

DENVER -- The younger brother of a polygamist sect leader pleaded guilty Monday to harboring a fugitive, but didn't reveal if he has told authorities where his sibling is hiding from federal charges.   Seth Steed Jeffs, 33, "accepted responsibility for his conduct," federal prosecutor Bill Taylor said.  "Harboring a state fugitive is pretty serious conduct."   Taylor had no comment when asked whether Jeffs gave any information about his brother's whereabouts.  Jeffs, of Hildale, Utah, had orginally pleaded not guilty in November.   Jeffs' brother Warren Jeffs, the 50-year-old leader of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, was indicted in June on an Arizona charge of arranging a marriage between a 16-year-old girl and a married man and on a federal charge of unlawful flight to avoid prosecution.   He was also recently charged in Utah with two counts of rape as an accomplice in arranging the marriage of a teenage girl to a man in Nevada.   The church, which embraces polygamy, is based in Hildale and Colorado City, Ariz., and has a ranch outside Eldorado, Texas.     Read more

A Community Ruled By Fear

America's Most Wanted Washington, DC Originally published May 4, 2006

Investigators say that Colorado City, Arizona is a community that has been living in servitude and secrets.  The Arizona Attorney General's Office and the FBI began investigating reports of child abuse, domestic violence, incest and polygamy that stem from a powerful congregation called the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (FLDS) and its leader, Warren Jeffs.   According to the FBI, Jeffs took control of Colorado City ten years ago and over time started similar communities in Utah, Texas, and Mexico.  Mojave County Attorney General's Office investigators say that Jeffs' teachings and sermons were designed to keep his flock loyal, unquestioning, and living in fear of reprisals.  For years, law enforcement officials were unable to move against Jeffs since his followers refused to testify against him.   Authorities say the main reason why Jeffs remained so powerful in Colorado City was his implementation of one-man rule.   This was a break from traditional Mormon doctrine in that, rather than a committee of appointed priests and bishops calling the shots, Jeffs was the absolute authority in the community.     Read more

Indicted "Prophet" In Hiding

America's Most Wanted Washington, DC Originally published May 4, 2006

Arizona Attorney General Terry Godard's investigation initially discovered many instances of child abuse, polygamy, and corruption in the FLDS-controlled local government.  In June 2005, a Mohave County grand jury indicted Jeffs on charges involving the marriage of a 16-year-old girl to a married man.  Currently, there are ten to fifteen similar cases pending.   Jeffs has been formally charged with Sexual Conduct with a Minor and Conspiracy to Conduct Sexual Conduct with a Minor.  The FBI maintains that Jeffs has not been back to Colorado City in almost two years and may be hiding out at other polygamist communities in British Columbia, Texas, or Mexico.   According to the FBI, Warren Jeffs is a difficult man to catch because not only will his loyal followers keep him protected and his location a secret, but Jeffs also had control of a $200 million dollar trust, built from profits and tithes from the communities he controls.     Read more

Tell me about this Warren Jeffs case

Interview with John Walsh of "America's Most Wanted" CNN LARRY KING LIVE Originally broadcast May 4, 2006

KING: Tell me about this Warren Jeffs case. JOHN WALSH, "AMERICA'S MOST WANTED": You know, this guy, Larry, is a dangerous, dangerous guy. The FBI and local authorities say that he's a cult leader, he has thousands of followers, millions of dollars. He's a spinoff -- and it's not even right to say that he was a spinoff of the Mormons, because people like the Smarts are Mormons, and this guy is an absolute aberration. But he's a polygamist. He believes in taking young girls and giving them to his followers, young girls as young as 12, 13 years old. He's wanted on multiple charges of child molestation. Who knows what else he's done, but he's been a fugitive for years. And I'd say he's a very, very dangerous cult leader, and I hope some of his followers are watching tonight and say, look, we'll give this guy up, because he's a nut case.

'Most Wanted' to feature Jeffs

By Ben Winslow Deseret Morning News Originally published Saturday, May 6, 2006

More publicity is being heaped on fugitive polygamist leader Warren Jeffs.   The Fox TV show "America's Most Wanted" is expected to profile the Fundamentalist LDS Church leader tonight at 8 p.m. on Channel 13.   The crime-fighting show will feature interviews with ex-FLDS members and a 15-minute dramatization of Jeffs and his taped sermons.  In their full context, the presentations are hours-long, monotonous diatribes.   "We cast an actor who was quite good, looks a lot like him, sounds a lot like him and we aired a couple of his sermons," said "America's Most Wanted" creative producer Greg Klein.   "He does a good job in conveying who Warren is."   Authorities here in Utah hope the profile on the popular crime-fighting TV show helps draw new attention to the manhunt for Jeffs.   "We're hoping the show will get every American out there looking and bring