20-year-old connected to FLDS religion arrested for sexual crimes, said he would ‘flee the country’

CEDAR CITY, Utah (ABC4) — On Monday, Feb. 10, a southern Utah man with connections to the FLDS religion was arrested for several sexual crimes. Officials believe more victims may come forward, according to arrest documents.

Lehi Rulon Jeffs, 20, was arrested on one count of forcible sodomy, a first-degree felony; one count of object rape, a first-degree felony; one count of sexual battery, a class A misdemeanor; one count of assault, a class B misdemeanor; and one count of lewdness, a class B misdemeanor.

According to an affidavit of probable cause filed in Iron County, three victims of Jeffs spoke to an officer with the Cedar City Police Department. The charges are related to the testimony of one victim, as two other victims reported alleged incidents that took place outside of the jurisdiction of Cedar City Police.

At least two of the victims were under the age of 18 when the alleged incidents occurred, police said.

“The Victims told me that they and [Jeffs] had grown up in a culture they identified as FLDS,” the arresting officer wrote in documents.

FLDS stands for the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, a religious group that was the subject of a 2022 docuseries on Netflix. The FLDS religion is described as a polygamist sect that broke off from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (colloquially known as the Mormon church).

“The Victims explained to me that in that [FLDS] culture, women are not supposed to tell men no or go against them,” arrest documents read. “They also explained to me that growing up they are not taught about anything sexual so they did not know what was going on, when [Jeffs] started assaulting them.”

No additional information was disclosed about the current religious affiliations of Jeffs or the victims.

Documents said the “original victim” told officials she “did not give consent to any of the actions” and “did not cooperate.” According to arrest documents, the alleged assaults took place in Jeffs’ vehicle at several different locations. The victim had bruises after the incident, which she showed officers.

The other victims reported similar stories, and told officials that Jeffs did not ask for their permission before performing sexual acts. During an interview with officers, after being read his Miranda rights, Jeffs said he asked for permission before performing the sexual acts.

Officials obtained a warrant for Jeffs’ phone, in addition to a warrant for data and information on the device. On his phone, officials found text conversations where he identified the victims and said he could “pay people off,” documents claim.

Jeffs also said he was “looking to flee the country due to these charges,” according to arrest documents.

Jeffs was booked into jail on Monday night. He has been ordered to be held without bail, as officials believe he may try to flee the country and pay off witnesses “to be quiet” based on the text messages he sent.

“There are also other charges from similar cases with other agencies with the same and different victims, that are still being investigated, including victims that were under the age of 18 at the time of the crime,” the affidavit reads.

Officials are also asking that Jeffs be held without bail until the investigations regarding other victims are finished. According to arrest documents, the victims who have already been interviewed said there is another victim, but she may have been getting money from Jeffs.