Five FLDS Suspects Surrender, by Jim Forsyth, WOAI, July 28, 2008

Five FLDS Suspects Surrender

By Jim Forsyth
WOAI
July 28, 2008

http://radio.woai.com/cc-common/news/sections/newsarticle.html?feed=&article=4016925

Five members of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints surrendered to the Schleicher County Sheriff's Office to face charges including sexual assault of a child, 1200 WOAI news reports today.

"These are men who obviously have been indicted by a Schleicher County grand jury fro sexually assaulting young children," Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott said. "I would be concerned for the safety of any children they would be exposed to."

Named in the indictments, which were handed up last week, are two leaders of the Yearning for Zion Ranch, Merrill Leroy Jessop, 33, and Raymond Merrill Jessop, 36. Each ischarged with one count of sexually assaulting a child, a first-degree felony which carries a potential sentence of life in prison. Merrill Jessop is also charged with bigamy, also a first degree felony.

Also charged with sexually assaulting a child are Michael Emack, 57, and Allan Eugene Keate, 56. A fifth man, Lloyd Barlow, 38, is charged with three counts of failure to report child abuse. He faces a maximum of up to six months in jail on the misdemeanor count.

Abbott hinted at the possibility of additional charges involving the financial structure of the YFZ Ranch.

"Ther appears to be a large amount of money involved in the FLDS group. We don't know how much at this time, but questions have been raised but among law enforcement and in Congressional level, about where has this money come from, and has it all been obtained legally," Abbott said.

Former members of the FLDS have claimed that the sect raises money in numerous ways, including welfare fraud, and by essentially forcing male members of the sect to work as slave laborers, seizing earnings they make at jobs taken outside the compound.

A sixth man indicted last week, Warren Jeffs, the so called 'prophet' of the FLDS, is already in jail in Arizona, awaiting similar charges there. Hew was convicted of similar charges involving underaged girls in Utah and is serving a sentence of ten years to life.

"We saw from the very beginning that they were making comments that they would turn themselves in and stand trial," Abbott said. "So we were hoping that they would do exactly what they did today."

Abbott said the surrenders took place without incident. Bond for the five men charged with first degree felonies was set at $100,000 per charge, with bond for Barlow set at $5,000.