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Posted: 12:20 PM- Sheriffs around the West were relieved Tuesday at the uneventful Nevada capture of Warren Steed Jeffs, the fugitive leader of a polygamist sect who had been on the run for more than 14 months.
Jeffs, 50, was taken into custody after he and two other people were pulled over at about 9:04 p.m. Monday by a Nevada Highway Patrol trooper on Interstate 15 just north of Las Vegas, FBI spokesman David Staretz said.
Simultaneous news conferences are scheduled to begin at noon in Salt Lake City, Las Vegas and Phoenix.
Items in the new burgundy Escalade vehicle when Jeffs was captured included: 27 stacks of $100 bills, worth $2,500 each; 14 cellular phones; a radar detector, two Global Positioning System units; two female wigs, one blonde and one brunette; several knives; several CDs; three watches; three Ipods; multiple credit cards; seven sets of keys; a photograph of Jeffs and his father; a Bible and a Book of Mormon.
The items were seen on pool video footage created with officials' permission.
Jeffs is the leader of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, headquartered in the twin communities of Hildale, Utah, and Colorado City, Ariz. The sect leader had been on the FBI's Ten Most Wanted list since May
Washington County Sheriff Kirk Smith, whose jurisdiction includes Hildale, said law enforcement had plans in place in the event of Jeffs' arrest, but nothing unusual was happening in the polygamous community.
"Historically, they've been a passive group and we'll just continue patroling the area and providing services," Smith said, adding that a few more deputies than usual were working in the community.
The sheriff said he's grateful there was no conflict and nobody was hurt in the stop.
In Schliecher County in southwestern Texas, home to the largest of several FLDS compounds, Sheriff David Doran said that "a weight has been lifted off of us." He said that cooperation among law enforcement agencies had helped narrow the search for Jeffs.
"It's definitely a relief," said Doran, who had been criticized by some in the rural community and in other states for not raiding the ranch to look for the fugitive polygamist.
Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard in June called for an FBI officials to form a federal task force, specifically criticizing "local law enforcement" for a lack of coordination and failure to pass along information in a timely manner to federal authorities.
But behind the scenes, "we were doing a lot," Doran insisted on Tuesday. Although no one came forward with information about Jeffs' whereabouts, contacts did inform his office that the FLDS president was not on the compound grounds, he said.
"We had no information leading us to believe he was in Texas," Doran said. "Our contacts have paid off with the correct information." Doran said he received official word at 8:45 a.m. (7:45 a.m. Mountain Time) from fellow sheriff Smith about the arrest. He then called a contact at the FLDS ranch with the news and then drove out there himself.
"I don't see anything changing here in Texas," he said. "I don't see anything unusual." The sheriff was arranging a plane flight over the ranch on Tuesday to "photo document" the activity. Even though there is no sign of any trouble among the 70 permanent residents there, "we're going to remain vigilant," Doran said.
Sheriff Rick Wheeler in Custer County, S.D., where another compound is located near the small town of Pringle, will "peek by tomorrow," he said.
"Yeah, this is good news for us too. This will dampen their spirits," he said. "I guess my thoughts are, 'What's going to happen next to these compounds without this leadership?' I'm sure there will be some changes in administration."
Two people in the vehicle were identified as one of Warren Jeffs' wives, Naomi Jeffs, and a brother, Isaac Steed Jeffs, both 32, Staretz said. They were interviewed Tuesday morning by the FBI in Las Vegas, but later released.
Jeffs is scheduled to appear in Las Vegas Justice Court on Thursday for an extradition hearing, said Clark County court information officer Michael Sommermeyer. Chief Judge James M. Bixler will review arrest warrants from both Utah and Arizona. Jeffs is being held until then without bail.
A federal charge of fleeing to avoid arrest has been dropped.
Jeffs was indicted in June 2005 on an Arizona charge of arranging a marriage between a 16-year-old girl and a married man, and unlawful flight to avoid prosecution.
He is also charged in Utah with two felony counts of rape as an accomplice, for allegedly arranging the marriage of a teenage girl to an older man in Nevada.
Las Vegas has become a new hub for the polygamous sect and the group recently moved Western Precision, one of the biggest FLDS businesses, there.
The FLDS Church, which embraces polygamy, split from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints when the mainstream Mormon Church disavowed plural marriage more than 100 years ago.
The capture came more than two years after Jeffs is known to have been seen outside the polygamous community.