Jessop: Colorado City squandering federal funds
 
By Mike Watkiss / 3TV Investigative reporter
KTVK NewsChannel 3 - Phoenix
 
In the polygamous community of Colorado City, a practice known as "bleeding the beast" is allegedly taking place.

Activist for victims of Polygamy, Flora Jessop, who alerted authorities to the polygamist prophet Warren Jeffs' move to Texas, says city officials are taking in large sums of federal money and then using that money to fund things that the government never intended to fund.

Jessop says this practice has lead to rampant welfare fraud among polygamist families. It's also, says Jessop, created a crisis in the city's school district.

And now there are serious questions about grant money supplied by Homeland Security is being misused by city officials.

"What is it going to take for [the government] to stop paying these criminals," asked Jessop. "It's bleeding the beast. They're using our government to fund their crimes."

According to Jessop, and indicated in documents obtained by 3TV, Colorado City's tiny fire department received a whopping $350,000 in Homeland Security funds last year. The community received the third largest Homeland Security grant in the state, behind only Phoenix and Fort Huachuca, Arizona.

Jessop says hundreds of thousands of dollars of taxpayer money has also allegedly been misappropriated by the Colorado City Unified School District and misused as officials purchased nice cars, private businesses and even an airplane.

The question is, what safeguards are in place for this Homeland Security money that apparently continues to flow into the pockets of the polygamist run town?

"We've got a federal FBI warrant out," said Jessop. "For the leader of this group, you would think that the federal government would be smart enough to stop the flow of money to this guy."

At a recent press conference announcing the increased reward for Jeffs’ capture, Arizona Atty. General Terry Goddard said, "We're concerned about every source of public money utilized by Colorado City. They've proved themselves the master of grant applications."

"[The money is used] to finance Warren Jeffs, for terrorism on women and children," said Jessop pointing to the recent arrest of Jeff's younger brother, Seth Jeffs. He was arrested late last year in Colorado after allegedly transporting tens of thousands of dollars to his fugitive sibling.

Jessops says there's a painful irony in the fact that while the government is actively trying to track down Warren Jeffs, another branch of the government is supplying his followers with mountains of taxpayer money.

"They need to take over that city's government," Jessop said

We called the fire department in Colorado City and were told no one would available for comment until next week.

3TV will continue to follow this story.
 
azfamily.com
Originally broadcast Friday, February 10, 2006
 
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