Community Seeks Answers to Questions about New Neighbors
 Authorities suspect local ranch tied to FLDS
 
The Eldorado Success
 
As word filtered out of Eldorado last week that a three-building compound under construction north of Eldorado might be connected to a polygamist group known as the Fundamentalist Church of Latter Day Saints (FLDS), media outlets from across the state, as well as Arizona and Utah, flooded into town to hear what Flora Jessop, a children's rights activist, would have to say at a press conference last Thursday.

The news that many of them sought, broke first on the front page of last week's Eldorado Success. The story, and its accompanying photo were picked up by a number of daily newspapers, including the Salt Lake City Tribune, which has closely followed the FLDS in the Arizona/Utah border towns of Colorado City, AZ and Hilldale, UT.

Jessop explained to reporters that she had grown up as a member of the FLDS and that she escaped from the group at age 16 after church leaders forced her to marry her cousin. She said that 28 of her brothers and sisters remain in the group.

Forced underage marriage, sexual abuse of children, welfare fraud, tax evasion, tax fraud and child labor violations, were but a few, of the allegations that Jessop leveled against the FLDS. She explained that the registered owner of the ranch in question, David Steed Allred, is a member of the FLDS and has close ties to its prophet, Warren Jeffs.

Allred is the only shareholder listed on the articles of incorporation for a company called YFZ, L.L.C., a limited liability corporation. YFZ bought more that 1,300 acres of ranch property some 4 miles outside of Eldorado on County Rd. 300 (Rudd Road.)

At the time of the purchase, Allred told local residents he came into contact with that he would be building a hunting retreat on the property. He said it would be a place where he could entertain his corporate clients.

The first indication local officials had that something might be amiss with Allred's story came on Feb. 26 of this year when Texas Parks & Wildlife Game Warden Marco Alvizo entered the ranch to investigate an alleged hunting violation. At that time, he cited William Benjamin Johnson, 28, of Hilldale Utah, for hunting without a license. The following day, Johnson paid a $253.00 fine to Justice of the Peace James C. Doyle.

It was about that same time that local pilots began noticing three large buildings being erected on the YFZ ranch. Rumors about the buildings, which bear little resemblance to most Schleicher County hunting camps, spread quickly across town.

Then, on March 4, 2004, ABC TV's Primetime Thursday aired an interview with Flora Jessop in which she outlined her efforts to rescue underage girls from forced marriages approved by the FLDS church. Jessop claimed that the church and its leader, Prophet Warren Jeffs, keeps young girls in virtual slavery, forcing them to marry, often within their own family, and have children of their own while in their early to mid-teens.

A Schleicher County viewer saw the television program and was convinced that the buildings going up north of Eldorado, and the secretive nature in which they were being built, were somehow connected to the FLDS. He telephoned Jessop to tell her of the construction and urged her to investigate.

Jessop did just that, contacting Success publisher Randy Mankin and Sheriff David Doran to ask questions and share information with the men.

What followed was a whirlwind investigation that is still ongoing. But, as the national media began to get wind of the story, it became evident to all involved that the investigation would not remain a secret for long. The Success broke the story early on Wednesday afternoon, March 24, putting its Thursday edition on sale a day early. The Salt Lake City Tribune, which exchanged photos and information with the Success, broke the story nationally the following day.

During the Thursday press conference, held in front of the Schleicher County Jail, Flora Jessop continued to press her case against the FLDS. With a dozen TV cameras and numerous radio and print reporters gathered around, Jessop was asked how convinced she was that the FLDS is coming to Eldorado.

"I don't think they're coming,' she replied, "I think they're here."

Jessop went on to say that the ranch's registered owner David S. Allred is related by marriage to FLDS Prophet Warren Jeffs and that he represents Jeffs and the FLDS in a number of businesses. She noted that Jeffs once recorded an audio tape titled "Yearning for Zion" and speculated that the ranch name YFZ is an abbreviation of that title.

For his part, Schleicher County Sheriff David Doran tried to calm local citizens and assure them that his office is monitoring the situation at the YFZ ranch.

"Flora has provided us with a lot of information and I find her to be very credible," Doran said. "However, at this time we have no firm evidence of any wrongdoing associated with the ranch. If and when we have evidence that a law has been broken out there, we won't hesitate to act."

Following the 20-minute press conference, the audience, consisting of about a hundred local citizens and about fifty journalists, gathered in several small clusters, asking questions and speculating about the future. "Why did they come to Texas," one lady asked Jessop.

"I don't know," she answered, "but it may have been a mistake." Jessop went on to tell the group that the FLDS controls the government and law enforcement in Colorado City and Hilldale.

"They may not be prepared to deal with law enforcement agencies that they don't own."

On Tuesday, Sheriff Doran advised the Success that he has continued to gather information about the YFZ ranch, its ownership and possible connection to the FLDS. "The vast majority of what I have seen leads me to suspect that yes, the ranch is connected to the FLDS," Doran said. "Can I prove that in court and do I have evidence that Texas laws have been broken? No."

Doran went on to explain that his department has access to resources and investigative personnel from various state and federal agencies. "All we have to do is call on them, but we need evidence," Doran concluded.

Law enforcement problems might not be the only concerns on the minds of the owners of the YFZ ranch. The Success has learned that representatives of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality want to visit the ranch to determine if it has adequate septic system or sewer facilities. Also, there remains the question about licensing future water wells through the Plateau Underground Water District.Jessop has returned to Phoenix, where she continues to monitor things here in Eldorado. Buster Johnson, a county supervisor (equivalent to a county commissioner in Texas) for Mojave County, AZ, where Colorado City is located, told the Success in a telephone interview Tuesday that he had traveled to Eldorado with Jessop to show his support for her and for the work that she is doing. “She can be a little abrasive and a little pushy," Johnson said, "but she's on the side of the angels in this one and I'm going to stand behind her."

Before taking office in Mojave County, Johnson was a Sheriff's Deputy in Los Angeles County, CA. "I carried a badge for a long time, and I saw a lot of stuff in those years, but I never had to deal with anything like the FLDS," Johnson said. "You guys really need to support your cops because they have an uphill battle."

The Success has made repeated attempts to contact David S. Allred, Warren Jeffs and, FLDS attorney Rodney Parker. Those calls have not been returned.
 
MyEldorado.net
Originally published April 1, 2004
 
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