| Jeffs faces indictment over child bride swap | |||
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Reported by: Brent Hunsaker ABC 4 News | |||
ELDORADO, Texas (ABC 4 News) - Evidence of a swap of child brides could land polygamist prophet Warren Jeffs in even more legal trouble. The grand jury looking into the criminal allegations against the FLDS meets Tuesday, July 22 in the courthouse in Eldorado. Sources close to the Texas investigation predict "several" indictments will be handed up by the grand jury against some of the leading men of the FLDS polygamist group - including Jeffs. Jeffs is likely to be charged in connection with the swap that investigators say took place July 27, 2006 in a house on the Eldorado FLDS ranch belonging to Jeffs. At the time, Jeffs was a fugitive on the FBI's "10 Most Wanted List." The swap was made between Jeffs and one of his Lieutenants, Merril Jessop. Jessop is an FLDS "bishop" who runs the ranch. Jeffs reportedly got an underage bride from Jessop, and Jessop got a bride for one of his sons. In a dictation submitted Friday in 51st District Court, San Angelo, Texas, Jeffs is quoted as saying, "I looked at Merril Jessop, and he looked at me, and he said, 'I am willing,' and smiled. I said, 'I am willing.' I explained that the Lord wanted this young lady to be sealed to me to carry on in her training..." Pictures previously made public in court proceedings show wedding pictures of Jeffs posing and kissing the 11-year old daughter of Jessop. More photos included in the Friday's filing show Warren's 15-year old daughter with Jessop's 35-year old son, Raymond. Some appear to be wedding photos, while others are under the captions, "One week anniversary", "I can't help rising in love with you" and "Happy to be married." The photos were taken from an album found during the raid last April of the FLDS ranch. Among the photos are handwritten entries from the girl's journal. She writes that her father, Warren counseled her "to get close quickly to my husband and not through sister-wives." The girl writes about the events surrounding the marriage as well as how she had to borrow a nightgown for her wedding night. Previously, an FLDS spokesman denied the 15-year old daughter of Jeffs was a child bride. If Jeffs is indicted in Texas, he won't be hard to find. He remains in jail awaiting trial in Kingman, Arizona on charges related to the forced marriage of underage girls to older men. He's already been convicted and sentenced to two consecutive 5-to-life terms in Utah for being "an accomplice to rape." | |||
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ABC4.com Originally published July 21, 2008 | |||
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