Disclaimer: The article contains mentions of child abuse and sexual assault. Reader discretion is advised.
The members of FLDS considered Warren Jeffs as their prophet. For many years, his followers admired him for his teachings. However, things changed in 2006 when police arrested him on the charges of sexual misconduct. The investigation led to shocking revelations about Jeffs’s polygamy and how he married underage girls. As per reports, Jeffs had 78 wives in addition to his legal better half. The entire case has been the subject of the 2022 Netflix documentary Keep Sweet: Pray and Obey.
According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Warren Jeffs was wanted for multiple crimes, including alleged sexual assault of a minor in 2002. On the other hand, authorities were looking for him in another case of sexual assault. Subsequently, he was charged for his involvement in two cases of rape in Utah in 2006. As per the FBI, the alleged crimes happened in the surrounding area of Colorado City, Arizona.
FBI placed him on its Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list until his arrest in August 2006. After Jeffs went on a trial, the jury found him guilty of child rape, per ABC News.
Where is Warren Jeffs now?
As mentioned above, a jury found Warren Jeffs guilty of child sexual assault charges in a case related to two young followers, per ABC News. He married two of his young followers and referred to it as “spiritual marriages.” The jury deliberated for a few hours before reaching a verdict. Shockingly, he acted as his lawyer during the trial and fired the defense team at the start of proceedings.
The prosecution team presented DNA evidence during the trial to prove Jeffs’s involvement. ABC News reported that the DNA evidence showed that Jeffs fathered a child with a 15-year-old girl. The outlet also stated that authorities discovered the girl from a compound in Texas that they raided in 2008. Prosecutors also presented audio recordings of Warren Jeffs instructing several young girls on how to please him sexually.
After the jury’s guilty verdict, the court sentenced Warren Jeffs to life in prison for sexually assaulting two minors, per The Florida Times-Union. According to the Texas Department of Corrections, Warren Jeffs is currently serving his sentence at the Louis C Powledge Unit in Texas. Jeffs is eligible for parole in July 2038.
