Evictions go to FLDS duo
 Notices served to councilman and to suspected Jeffs confidant
 
By Ben Winslow
Deseret Morning News
Warren Jeffs

Warren Jeffs

Two high-profile members of the Fundamentalist LDS Church have been handed eviction notices telling them to pay up taxes or move out.

The eviction notices were served on Colorado City, Ariz., Town Councilman William Shapley and former United Effort Plan (UEP) Trustee James Zitting, who is rumored to be part of fugitive FLDS Church leader Warren Jeffs' inner circle.

"I don't know if this is some kind of a test to see how serious I am about the issues," Bruce Wisan, the court-appointed special fiduciary of the UEP Trust said Friday. "I don't know if they just don't have the money or don't want to pay. But in order to keep the momentum of the property tax payments going and to maintain credibility, I'm certainly going to evict."

The two men have five days to respond to the eviction notices or face court action kicking them out of their large-scale Colorado City homes.

In 2005, a Utah judge took control of the UEP Trust amid allegations that Jeffs and other top FLDS Church leaders had fleeced assets belonging to the people within the polygamous border towns of Hildale and Colorado City. Wisan, who was appointed by the courts to oversee the $110 million trust, has been trying to get people within the border towns to pay their property taxes.

Warren Jeffs has reportedly told his faithful followers not to pay their taxes. However, the taxes are being paid.

Notices are now being served on all residences in Hildale, said Wisan's lawyer, Jeffrey L. Shields. He told the Deseret Morning News some people have already contacted him indicating a willingness to pay their share of the taxes. However, no one is coming forward until they get a hand-delivered demand.

"It frustrates you," he said. "Maybe it requires a personal invitation or demand for them to pay their taxes."

Jeffs remains on the run, but the Arizona attorney general hopes new cooperation and better communication among local law enforcement and FBI agents will lead to a speedier capture.

Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard met with FBI brass in Washington, D.C., Monday to push for better cooperation and communication among the agencies involved in the case.

"It was a productive meeting," Goddard spokeswoman Andrea Esquer said. "He was pleased with what he heard from representatives of the FBI."

Goddard has said the FBI was not using state and local law enforcement enough in the search for the fugitive polygamist leader. Esquer would not provide details about what was discussed during Monday's meeting, citing the nature of the investigation into Jeffs. However, she said Goddard left with good feelings.

"There's a new representative in charge of the Arizona FBI office that the folks in D.C. felt would resolve the communication issues in Arizona," Esquer said.

In an interview last week with the Deseret Morning News, Goddard first expressed his feelings on the issue. He also revealed he had information that Jeffs may have been in the area recently.

"I've heard a lot of statements that he's still personally performing marriages," Goddard said.

The FBI's Salt Lake City and Phoenix offices declined to talk about Goddard's remarks. However, FBI Special Agent Deborah McCarley in Phoenix said agents continue to pursue every lead they get about Jeffs' whereabouts.

"That investigation is ongoing," she said Monday. "We're doing what we can and following up on what information we have."

Jeffs is a fugitive on the FBI's Ten Most Wanted list. The FLDS Church leader is charged in Utah and Arizona with crimes accusing him of forcing teenage girls into polygamous marriages with older men. Federal prosecutors have filed unlawful flight to avoid prosecution charges against him. A $100,000 reward is being offered for information leading to his arrest.

E-mail: bwinslow@desnews.com
 
deseretnews.com
Originally published Saturday, June 17, 2006
 
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