All language subtitles for American Greed s13e04 Prophets of Greed

It's in this episode of American Greed.

In a small secluded community where
polygamy is practiced as a spiritual

two brothers, Warren and Lyle Jeffs,
claim they are bringing the word of God

devoted followers.

These men were standing in a position as
God's over us.

But God, it appears, is just a cover.
And they were using the religion, they

were wrapping themselves in the religion
to commit crimes.

For Warren, the crimes are against
children.

This is about little girls being taken
away from their parents, tied up, and

raped. And for Lyle, the crime is fraud.

Millions of dollars in taxpayers' money
is stolen.

They bought a John Deere tractor and a
Ford F -350 pickup truck.

And the FBI catches the scheme on tape.
We're zooming in to capture their

license plate.

And the devoted followers, they say they
are told to do the fraudster's dirty

work or else.

I knew it was illegal, but the kind of
pressure that we were under, if you

didn't obey all the rules, you could
lose your family.

Hidden below the red vermilion cliffs in
southern Utah is a remote site, perfect

for people who want nothing more than to
be left alone.

And so in the 1930s, fundamentalist
Mormons come here and create a refuge

the Fundamentalist Church of Latter -day
Saints, FLDS.

They want to be isolated in order to
practice a way of life they believe is

sacred.

The practice of having multiple wives.

Polygamy.

They felt like they had to do it
secretly and underground because it was

illegal, forbidden by the mainstream,
looked down upon by the mainstream.

But over time, the need for secrecy
lessens as church members build a

community in two towns bordering two
states, Colorado City, Arizona and

Hilldale, Utah.

They call their home Short Creek.

It's where Dee Barlow grows up.

Short Creek was established on the basis
of being able to find a place where you

could raise your family in a society
that was away from the social evil and

bring your kids up in what is termed
light and truth.

So we'll be crossing the state line in
just a minute.

Willie Jessup also grows up in Short
Creek.

at a time when polygamy was practiced
openly.

Even the marriages and everything were
quite transparent.

So if there was a marriage, everyone in
the community would show up and support

it. Over time, FLDS members build
successful businesses, primarily doing

construction outside of Short Creek.

And as those businesses make donations,
the wealth of the church grows.

We were very highly motivated to be able
to financially bankroll the church in

every need that it could, believing it
was taking care of the most needy in

society. And we were, you know, making a
difference for goodness for everyone.

But in 2002, a change comes to Short
Creek.

At the time, the leader and prophet of
the FLDS church is 92 -year -old Rulan

Jeffs.

Wallace Jeffs is his son.

When I grew up with my father, he only
had eight wives, if you want to call it

only.

But when he died, he had 87 wives.

Brunan lives in Salt Lake City, where he
claims he has a revelation from God

that Salt Lake will soon be destroyed.

And he commands all church members there
to move to Short Creek, where they will

be safe.

They had this thing called the lifting
up.

where everybody in Short Creek was going
to be lifted up from the earth, piece

of land.

I mean, literally, a piece of land was
going to be lifted up while the

destructions wiped the wicked of the
earth off.

So we were down there for this lifting
up.

But in Short Creek, Rulon dies.

Immediately, his son Warren declares
that he is the new prophet, a position

extraordinary power.

As the prophet, he is the literal
mouthpiece of God. So when he speaks

and he gives his revelations to the
community, it is in the first

person of the deity of God.

And Warren's consistent message from
God, even embedded in a chimney, is pray

and obey.

And as heard in this recording, the
message comes with a threat.

But know this, great warning.

You are shut out of heaven forever
unless you just obey

the prophet.

And soon, according to former members,
Warren issues a litany of commandments.

He shut down all the dances and says,
you know, we can't do this. It's

We can't be exposing our children to TV.
You've got to get rid of rock and roll

music. We can't have socials and
anything that's going to take your focus

God. The word fun was banned.

The word enjoyment was on a reduced
basis.

Anything that was of a celebration
style, holiday was just done away with,

including birthdays.

Some say it's his way of legitimizing
his role.

That was the way he was trying to be
recognized as the prophet by being the

that was the most holy, the most
obedient, the most determined to bring

everybody into a religious perspective.

And Warren knows he's playing to a well
-trained audience.

Brenda Nicholson grows up in the church
and is taught that perfect obedience is

required for eternal salvation.

He basically was handed on a silver
platter a group of people who had been

very carefully through generations
groomed to accept

this place of being perfectly obedient.

But apparently obedience to the rules
does not apply to Warren. For example,

recorded statements like this.

He controls his followers by ordering
that all construction on Short Creek

be stopped.

And the projects are frozen.

But he has his own enormous compound
built.

The size of an entire block for himself
and his growing collection of wives.

Who are pictured in widely circulated
photographs like this one.

showcasing adoration for Warren.

And no one questions the prophet.

He gets whatever he wants.

Warren had everything at his fingertips.

If he wanted a new car, he could get it.
If he wanted a new personal bodyguard,

he had it there.

He was a man of means.

And he is a man with secrets to protect.

And so he needs absolute control of
every man, woman, and child in Short

And that is what he gets on a Saturday
morning in January 2004 in the church

meeting house.

That morning, Warren declares that 21
men, all long -standing leaders in the

church, are master deceivers and
excommunicates them all.

They must leave Short Creek immediately.

It was just devastating.

It's like taking everything up by the
roots, ripping it up by the roots.

I call it one of the dark days of Short
Creek because it took the pillars of our

community and wiped them out.

In months to come, the expulsion of men
from the church becomes almost routine.

Even some of Warren's brothers are
banished.

When they called me, I figured this was
it, but I had no idea why.

And they don't tell you why.

They just say, Warren, the prophet says
you are not worthy.

The husbands who are kicked out are told
they are no longer fit to be fathers to

their children.

That was the hardest thing I ever did in
my life.

Yeah, you have to go back. You have to
tell your family that you're not worthy.

You're not worthy of them.

When you lose everything.

Literally, all you leave with is a shirt
on your back.

There's a physical pain that comes with
that that is excruciating.

You can't even explain it, but it's an
anguish that

creates a physical pain that's
unexplainable.

And now, under the constant threat of
expulsion, No one would dare cross

Jeffs. In almost no time, he has made an
extremely effective grab for power. And

with power comes money. The opportunity
to do whatever he wants.

Up next on American Greed, the prophet's
secrets exposed.

Mr. Jeffs, did you rape those two girls?

In Short Creek, there is a story that
every child learns early.

The story of the raid on July 26, 1953.

On that day, the Arizona State Police
come into town and arrest most of the

adults. They take more than 200 children
into custody.

The reason?

Reports of underage marriage.

In the end, little comes of the raid.

But in Short Creek, there is a
heightened fear of the outside world.

And 50 years later, Short Creek's
mistrust of outsiders plays beautifully

Warren Jeff's hands.

You know, they're always telling you
any, you know, the Gentiles would love

nothing more than to come in here and
destroy us.

Warren says that threats from the
outside world are the reason members

their children out of public schools.

The reason members are not allowed to
associate with non -members called

Gentiles. It's why streets in Short
Creek are lined with walls.

But are the walls there to protect
members or to hide the secrets of the

leaders? This created a perfect
environment for people to look at

that it was an outside threat without
recognizing that what he was doing is he

was using this secrecy.

for some very sinister and evil
purposes.

And those sinister and evil purposes
begin to come to light when a young

member, Elissa Wall, steps forward.

But I have followed my heart, and I've
spoken the truth.

Claiming that at age 14, she is forced
into marrying her cousin by Warren

This was the first time that we ever had
anybody who would...

inside the community come out and be
willing to testify as to what had

inside. Warren is charged with rape as
an accomplice. His eventual conviction

overturned for errors in jury
instruction.

But as law enforcement closes in, Warren
assures his followers that he is above

the law.

He says no person, no court, no
government can question what God has him

And then he runs away.

He leaves his younger brother Lyle in
charge of Short Creek.

Lyle was very cocky, very proud, self
-centered, just

not a real kind person.

And Lyle makes it clear he too is above
the law as he helps Warren evade

capture.

They did the best they could to obstruct
justice in every way possible.

But in August of 2006, Warren is
arrested near Las Vegas in a routine

stop. He has $50 ,000 in cash and
assorted disguises.

But the discovery that causes his
downfall comes later, when law

finds photographs like these.

They provide dramatic evidence in court
of Warren Jeffs' sexual experiences with

child brides only 12 and 14 years old.

And with that, the most holy prophet
Warren Jeffs is charged with sexually

assaulting children.

The story is national news.

Mr. Jeffs, did you rape those two girls?

Mr. Jeffs? I was walking through a truck
stop.

And I saw a news article that showed
Warren kissing this 12

-year -old girl.

I knew this girl very well. I knew how
old she was.

I knew who she was.

And I just remember seeing that picture
and

thinking, I could be one of my
daughters.

But in Short Creek, former members say
people aren't allowed to get their news

from only one source,

Lyle Jeffs.

The people were told, don't go to the
television, don't go to the newspapers,

don't find any other news source, but
let Lyle become your source of

information. Remember the 1953 raid,
they are told.

This is what the government does.

Warren is a martyr.

I thought he was the greatest man on
earth and he had been wrongfully

He was in prison because of the lies of
apostates.

Willie Jessup, as a faithful FLDS
member, is so eager to prove Warren's

innocence, he interviews the girls,
learning the horrifying truth.

The government isn't lying.

Warren is.

The greatest betrayal of my life. And I
never saw it coming. I've never cried

harder in my life, and I've never been
sicker in my life.

And Warren is not alone.

Other church leaders are convicted on
charges related to underage marriages.

But now, for Jessup, the claim of
government persecution of Warren no

rings true.

This isn't about consensual marriages.

This isn't about plural marriage. This
is about little girls being taken away

from their parents, tied up, and raped.

And there is no way to put any frosting
on it. This is horrific, graphic,

horrible acts.

against innocent people.

Up next on American Greed, in Short
Creek, greed is in charge.

It has nothing to do with God. It has
nothing to do with religion, pride,

control, and money.

In 2011, just outside Palestine, Texas,
Warren Jeffs is in a state prison

serving a sentence of life plus 20 years
after being convicted of sexually

assaulting children.

It's easy to believe that the bad guy
has been put away and all will be well.

If he was truly the only problem when he
was imprisoned, everything would have

changed.

And it didn't.

Warren continues to issue commandments
from his prison cell that are obeyed.

All children's toys must be destroyed.

Internet access is forbidden.

He seems to be as powerful as ever. But
in reality, the person keeping Warren in

power is his brother, Lyle.

Lyle tells people that he speaks for
Warren.

I am the only person now that can save
you. Warren's in jail.

I'm the closest thing to Warren you
people will ever see.

And he started marketing himself as a
Warren.

And that works out very well for Lyle.

He is living in a huge house inside the
walled Jeff's family compound with his

multiple wives.

He owns a mobile home worth more than
$100 ,000.

And that is just one option for his
transportation.

He has every vehicle that he could ever
want right at his fingertips, including

very high -end cars, Infinities, Audis,
vehicles that he traveled

around in constantly in the community.

For Lyle, it appears God is out and
greed is in. Pride and greed.

Absolutely. That's all it is. It has
nothing to do with God. It has nothing

do with religion, pride, control, and
money.

Agents at the FBI agree.

Lyle and a few others, they say, are not
running a church.

They are running a criminal enterprise.

They were basically like wolves in
sheep's clothing. They were using their

religion. They were wrapping themselves
in their religion to commit crimes.

Obstructing justice by using local
police to spy on residents.

Children are ordered out of school to
work long hours on church projects.

And the FBI receives widespread
allegations of fraud.

And even then I remember thinking, if
we're God's people, why do we have

to lie and commit fraud? Why doesn't he
provide for us?

And now cash coming into the church goes
to projects that defy reason.

Life of Warren Jeffs says he will be
released from jail if the members build

a palatial residence and Lyle makes sure
the multi -million dollar walled palace

is built.

But much of the money, tens of millions
of dollars, goes to build new secret

communities in Colorado and South
Dakota, places they call lands of

Places reserved for people loyal to Lyle
and Warren.

So now it went from a religion about
taking care of the poor and the needy

helping those that needed it. 100 % of
everything was how can you make the

more powerful, more strong, using the
name of religion, but it had nothing to

with the poor and the sick.

And where do the multiple millions of
dollars for Warren and Lyle's projects

come from?

Short Creek.

Business owners are tapped to the point
of bankruptcy.

The businesses just were not able to
keep up with the demands, and some of

had to fold. But eventually, the squeeze
always ends up on the members, who are

told to give till it hurts and then give
some more.

We were barely surviving, but, you know,
they put it across as what matters

more? You know, the destructions could
come any day.

Don't you think you're going to wish you
had somewhere to be? You need to show

your support.

So we did.

And there is also the constant threat
that if you don't pay up, you will get

kicked out.

Basically, it is if you didn't come
through and tumble in and make your

contributions, then you're putting your
family and you at risk.

Certainly as a father, you're putting
yourself at risk to lose your family.

But no matter how much people give,
there is never enough money.

And so in 2011, a plan is implemented to
take literally everything from the

people of Short Creek.

Church leaders announced that Warren is
requiring the implementation of his

interpretation of a 19th century Mormon
practice of sharing goods. It's called

the United Order.

What that meant is everyone had to
consecrate everything that they had been

given here, all their earthly
possessions, all their income,

be donated to the church.

So you virtually own nothing. Everything
that you have, that you are in control

of, you're actually a steward for.

The church controls everything.

But the idea sold to the community is
that this is a way to share resources.

And they brought it up as this is this
amazing thing.

This was leveling the playing field.
Everyone was going to be more equal. And

actually felt really bad for the people
who had gotten accustomed to living like

kings because it was going to be a
sacrifice for them. For me, it was going

be, you know, I was looking forward to
actually having more.

But as with everything with the Jeffs,
there is a catch.

To participate in the United Order, you
have to qualify.

Up next on American Greed, how far Lyle
will go.

So we would go home and having not much
to feed our children.

Literally, we were starving.

In December 2011, almost 10 years after
Warren Jeffs became the FLDS prophet,

Short Creek is under the full control of
his brother, Lyle Jeffs.

Under the rule of Lyle Jeffs, a security
conscious environment progressed to

what I would consider a security state.

Everywhere you went, you were being
watched.

It's something on your mind 24 -7.

Are my boys going to be okay?

You know, if one day you see them with
their sleeves rolled up, you about have

heart attack because are they going to
be seen as naughty boys and get kicked

out or sent away?

Lyle continues to banish fathers.

And according to federal law
enforcement, on occasion, he even takes

himself and their money.

All he did was come in off the...

as a pariah and as a leech off of people
that had been kicked out and millions

of dollars of their assets were shifted
over to him. He's now sleeping with

their wives and impregnating them,
living in their homes.

And now Lyle and two cohorts will be the
ones to decide who is worthy of joining

the new echelon in the church called the
United Order.

We were told these men were standing in
a position as...

You know, God's over us to a degree. You
know, God would whisper to them if you

were worthy.

And God's whisper for Brenda is that
three of her six children are worthy.

Her husband and the three others are
not.

This was it. This was everything riding
on this decision.

And then she says her worthy daughter
shares what she has learned at a

She said Uncle Lyle said that God gave
this revelation.

And so the worthies are no longer
allowed to live with the unworthies. She

so they're going to take us away. We
can't live with you anymore.

And I can't quite describe what that
felt like inside of me.

But no one is taking Brenda Nicholson's
children.

And so in the middle of the night, her
family packs up and leaves Short Creek

for good.

I knew there was a good chance I'd never
get to see or talk to my

mother or my siblings again.

At the same time, Dee Barlow is asked to
be on the committee that will decide

which worthy families will get which
worthy children.

And for Barlow, that is too much.

He decides he also must leave Short
Creek.

Because I felt like I had eternal
consequences.

That to fuss around in the life of
children, and especially that very

connection with parents, I have a
personal honor system. It was not

going to be looked on with any degree of
mercy.

Because everything that we have is about
family.

It's about children.

But apparently for Lyle...

It's about money.

And now he is insisting that everyone in
the new United Order take inventory of

all their possessions and turn them over
to a church warehouse called the

storehouse, where he says they will be
available to all. Some of those.

Asset sheets were over 300 pages of
lined paper on both sides, naming out

pin, every shoe, every spare shoelace,
their pairs of glasses, their contacts,

and they were required to go and submit
that to Lyle Jeffs.

At this point, many do not have much to
give.

With so many fathers kicked out, Short
Creek is one of the poorest communities

in Utah.

The father was the cornerstone of the
providing for the families. And so now

of a sudden you have an abundant women
and children without an income provider.

And those women and children qualify for
government help, which comes in the

form of supplemental nutrition
assistance called SNAP benefits, also

food stamps.

The Short Creek area during this time
frame consisted of about 6 ,000 people,

and we determined that there were
approximately 2 ,700 snap card holders

area. And that means there is big money
in food stamps, and Lyle wants it.

He calls everyone together to explain
his scheme.

Cheryl Barlow is Dee's wife, who stays
behind when Dee leaves Short Creek.

We were told to attend storehouse
training meetings, and in those

and those that he told, instructed,
would tell us how to use our food stamps

cards. Members are told to spend their
monthly food stamp allocation at two

convenience stores, not to buy food, but
to make a donation to the church.

I knew it was illegal, but the kind of
pressure that we were under,

It was, if you didn't obey all the
rules, you could lose your family.

Shirley Draper runs a social service
agency in Short Creek.

We're talking about families that did
not have money to pay for health care.

They didn't have money to, you know,
even buy clothing or anything. And then

they're told they also have to hand over
their snack cards.

And so even their food is now in peril.

And that means that for some, Lyle has
now gone too far.

And they make a call to the FBI.

For the first time in decades, we had
these witnesses that were coming forward

and giving us firsthand knowledge of
things like public corruption and crimes

against children and fraud that was
occurring.

As the agents begin their
investigation...

They see that two small FLDS -controlled
convenience stores are processing

enormous food stamp transactions.

It was an incredible fraud flag. If you
have a $4 ,500 transaction at the

counter of a small convenience store,
that raises eyebrows.

What are you buying for $4 ,500 at a
convenience store?

And so the FBI installs surveillance
cameras outside and inside the stores.

And over hundreds of hours of video,
they watch Lyle's suspected fraud

Up next on American Greed, while members
are starving... Lyle Jeffs had a

personal chef, and his personal chef
prepared him steak and lobster and

scallops. Hear how Lyle Jeffs evades the
FBI on AmericanGreed .CNBC

.com.

Want inside information from the show?

Join the Greed Social Network.

Like us on American Greed's Facebook
page.

We'll be right back.

By 2015, every day in Short Creek,
families on food stamps head to an FLDS

-controlled store to donate their
government benefits to their church.

And the FBI is watching every step they
take.

These are very faithful people that are
walking in and consecrating their money,

believing that all of that money is
going to the storehouse and that they're

benefiting themselves and their
neighbors.

Once inside, the clerk hands the church
member a list of items that the

storehouse needs.

But that's, it's just smoke and mirrors.
It's just to give the people donating

the feeling that they are contributing.

And then the customer hands over her
food stamp card, known as an EBT card,

like a credit or debit card.

And in that fast transaction, she has
given money she needs to feed her family

to Lyle Jeffs.

In this case, the customer turns over $2
,600 and leaves the store without a

single item of food.

The amount of food that you could buy
even for a large family would sustain

family throughout the month.

After making their donation, church
members expect that they can go to the

storehouse and pick up whatever they
need.

But that is not true.

thought we had contributed, there was
nothing there. So we would go home and

having not much to feed our children.

Literally, we were starving.

And so if food stamp funds are not going
to fill the storehouse with food, where

does that money go?

Federal prosecutors say it goes straight
into the control of Lyle Jeffs and his

friends.

They used it to buy things other than
food. They bought a John Deere tractor,

Ford F -350 pickup truck. They spent a
million dollars on farming supplies,

principally grain for cattle, not food
for human beings to eat.

Prosecutors estimate the fraud brings in
more than $11 million.

And a significant amount of the money
goes to those privileged lands of refuge

in Colorado and South Dakota, which at
all costs must be kept secret.

The leaders of the church didn't want
scrutiny into those communities.

There was an edict that those persons
couldn't participate in food stamps. And

so food stamp money from Shore Creek had
to be diverted to those communities so

they could subsist.

And that leaves the people in Short
Creek in desperate shape.

It was very difficult as a mother to
watch my kids go without,

to have a little child come and ask for
food, and I had nothing to give him.

Eventually, Cheryl takes a risk.

She secretly buys snacks and hides them.

And there was one point that the
caretaker of the home took me aside.

and told me that I could lose my
children. For me to use those EBT

buy food for my children, I could lose
my children and be sent away.

Families like the Barlows make do with
meager meals, but Lyle appears to be

feeling no pain.

He has access to whatever he wants in
the storehouse.

He had keys to it, and there were
witness accounts where those...

Family members of Lyle's household would
go after hours to the storehouse and

pick off the shelves whatever they
needed, whatever they wanted, bring it

Their shelves were always stocked. Their
refrigerator was always full.

While the other members starved and did
not have the food they needed, the

nutrition that they needed, they were
living off of rice and ketchup.

Lyle Jeffs had a personal chef and his
personal chef prepared him steak and

lobster and scallops. And he lived very,
very well.

But Lyle's lobster eating days are
numbered.

In February 2016, the FBI is ready.

Agents surround the FLDS stores and take
the final evidence for the case.

Church members who donated their
benefits are not charged.

But 11 church leaders are indicted on
conspiracy charges of food stamp fraud

money laundering.

And the one who matters most to the FBI
is Lyle Jett.

We wanted Lyle because he was the guy
that was doing all the evil in the

community, and he was the one directing
others to do these heinous acts.

And so while the...

The food stamp case wasn't the sexiest
from a law enforcement standpoint. It

still a very meaningful thing to us
because underlying that was the fact

people were starving.

Prosecutors argue that Lyle should
remain in custody.

We considered the fact that Warren Jeffs
had fled, and we were

fairly convinced that if given a chance
that Lyle Jeffs would flee.

And the judge gives Lyle that chance.

Placed in home confinement, Lyle
maneuvers his ankle monitor off.

And just as Warren had done years
before, he runs away.

We had very little leads. He fled in the
middle of the night. He had 24 hours or

more head start on us.

But before he leaves, he receives
personal direction from Warren.

telling Lyle to resume his duties in
Short Creek.

Warren just told him to not fear law
enforcement, that he would be protected,

and that he needed to just do what was
told.

And that was to go and handle United
Order matters back in Short Creek,

the bishop again.

But Lyle is afraid, and he makes a
fateful decision.

Disobey the prophet.

Up next on American Greed.

Justice for Lyle.

Here he is going from living a
multimillion -dollar lifestyle to

Leatherman to get a hamburger.

For almost a year, the FBI pursues Lyle
Jeffs across the country, running down

tips and following leads.

We did our best in the very beginning to
try to locate him and find him, but we

were always a little too far behind, a
little too late.

The agents eventually put out a $50 ,000
reward, and that pays off.

In July 2017, in Yankton, South Dakota,
the owner of a pawn shop calls local

police to say wanted fugitive Lyle Jeffs
just pawned a Leatherman tool for

$37.

He's destitute. He's living like a
vagabond. He's driving around in his F

living out of his vehicle.

It appears Lyle is getting a taste of
his own bitter medicine.

He disobeyed Warren.

And so from prison, Warren has directed
his remaining followers in Short Creek

to kick Lyle out of the church.

And what that did to the people that
were supporting him is prevented them

even talking to him or helping him in
any way.

Consequently, he was on his own. Here he
is going from living a multimillion

dollar lifestyle.

Pawning a Leatherman to get a hamburger.

All I could do was laugh.

That was so fitting.

Almost immediately, Gary Franz heads to
South Dakota.

He gets word that Lyle has been pulled
over by a local cop.

I responded within just a couple of
minutes of them pulling him over.

And to walk around and to see Lyle and
to introduce myself and to let him know

the FBI was here and that he had been
caught, that was pretty sweet.

Lyle pleads guilty to fraud.

The judge estimates the loss at $2
million and sentences Jeffs to nearly

years.

Brenda Nicholson attends his sentencing
hearing.

And sometimes I feel like maybe it makes
me a bad person, but I really enjoyed

sitting in the room.

and seeing him in shackles and chains.

Because he spiritually has enslaved so

many people that it was nice to see at
least some degree of justice served.

Brenda and her family are now living in
Vancouver, Washington, adjusting to a

challenging life.

We looked at the Gentile world as
horrific.

dangerous, horrible place, and now it's
our world.

And it really is like being dropped into
a foreign country. Yeah, we all spoke

English, but words meant something
different to us.

But she has no regrets.

You know, my worst day out here is a
thousand times better than my best day

there. That is a feeling many who left
share, like Cheryl Barlow.

She eventually makes the decision to
join her husband, Dee, in life on the

outside.

Having the threat of losing my children
hanging over my head, it put a fire

inside of me that I would not, no matter
what happened, I was not going to allow

my kids to be taken away.

Today, Cheryl and Dee live outside
Phoenix, Arizona, and their children,

of them, are thriving.

And it's a happy ending for Wallace
Jeffs as well.

He sues the church and wins custody of
his children.

At first, they want nothing to do with
him.

I won them over.

It took a while, but now they see the
light and they're actually grateful that

did what I did.

Saved them from horrible atrocities.

Life is good.

And that life is good feeling is
something Willie Jessup wants to return

of Short Creek, to bring the community
back to where it once was.

We've got to bring sports back. We've
got to bring dances back. We've got to

bring empowerment to women to be able to
say, I have a right to know where my

daughter is.

Jessup now owns the enormous compound
Warren ordered built for him.

He has turned part of it into a hotel.

and turned what was the storehouse into
a thriving public school.

You'll see it very typically. You'll see
a poor, timid little family with a few

prairie dresses walk up into the school.

A month later, they're wearing shorts
and whatever, and they've joined a

basketball team, and they're out there
at midnight still trying to make free

throws because they've never been able
to hit hoops or have the access to it.

There is something of a renaissance
going on here.

There is a new library.

Playgrounds are being restored.

Holidays are celebrated.

The walls are coming down.

Warren and Lyle Jeffs came into Short
Creek emboldened by unrelenting greed

sucked from it everything they could.

And now, their victims say they are
celebrating the sweet justice they feel.

as the brothers sit behind bars, and
they rebuild their lives.

And so it's actually something that just
brings a smile to your face to see how

resilient societies can be once we were
able to get the cancer out, which was

Lyle Jeffs and his brother.