Warren Jeffs Caught

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/nation/4149452.html

Warren Steed Jeffs, 50, is shown in this December 2005 file photo supplied by a member of his FLDS church in Hildale, Utah. (AP Photo/Douglas C. Pizac) DOUGLAS C. PIZAC: AP

Aug. 29, 2006, 2:13PM
Fugitive polygamist leader Jeffs caught

By KEN RITTER Associated Press Writer
© 2006 The Associated Press

LAS VEGAS — A fugitive polygamist leader who was on the FBI's Most Wanted List was found with cell phones, laptop computers, wigs and more than $50,000 in cash when he was arrested, authorities said Tuesday.

Warren Steed Jeffs, 50, was arrested without incident and no weapons were found when he and two others were pulled over on a routine stop and taken into custody late Monday, said FBI special agent in charge Steven Martinez.

Jeffs, who was not driving, was stopped in a 2007 red Cadillac Escalade by a Nevada Highway Patrol trooper on Interstate 15 just north of Las Vegas.

He was being held in Clark County jail and faces sexual misconduct charges in Utah and Arizona for allegedly arranging marriages between underage girls and older men.

"The inventory search is not complete. No weapons were found in the car, thus far, or at the scene," Martinez told reporters in Las Vegas.

Martinez said Jeffs initially used an alias, but Martinez would not disclose the name.

The two people traveling with Jeffs, one of Warren Jeffs' wives, Naomi Jeffs, and a brother, Isaac Steed Jeffs, both 32, were interviewed and released, Martinez said.

After consulting with authorities in Utah and Arizona, "it was determined they would not be charged for harboring or any other offenses," he said. "They are now on the street."

"Needless to say I'm extremely proud of our Department of Public Safety state troopers," said George Togliatti, director of the Nevada Department of Public Safety. "Our trooper did a fantastic job."