SALT LAKE CITY (AP) - The Latest on the capture of fugitive polygamous sect leader Lyle Jeffs (all times local):
1:55 p.m.
The owner of a small-town South Dakota pawn shop says Lyle Jeffs revealed who he was on Tuesday when he pawned two pairs of Leatherman pliers for $37 and provided identification.
River City Treasures and Pawn owner Kevin Haug says a store employee in the small town of Yankton notified him that Jeffs was wanted by the FBI after Jeffs had left the store.
Haug says Jeffs provided his last name as his first name, going by Jeffs Lyle Steed.
Haug then read about Jeffs on the internet and called Yankton police. He says he provided officers with store video and pawn paperwork.
Haug says Jeffs also visited the store last week and tried to sell a tool but the store did not buy it that time and Jeffs did not identify himself during the earlier visit.
He says Jeffs during his first visit was fidgeting, seemed nervous and “acting like a freak.”
Yankton County Chief Deputy Sheriff Michael Rothschadl says authorities looked for Jeffs in the area because of the tip from the pawn shop
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11:30 a.m.
Authorities say escaped polygamous sect leader Lyle Jeffs was living out of his car when he was captured in South Dakota.
FBI Special Agent in Charge Eric Barnhart said in Salt Lake City on Thursday that a tip led to Jeffs’ capture at a recreation-area marina southwest of Sioux Falls.
U.S. Attorney for Utah John Huber says Jeffs will likely face at least one other felony charge connected to his time on the run.
He says the arrest shows that law enforcement will catch up with fugitives.
Authorities had been looking for Jeffs since June 18, 2016, when he escaped from home confinement in Salt Lake City pending trial on charges in an alleged multimillion-dollar food stamp fraud scheme.
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9:35 a.m.
South Dakota authorities say polygamous sect leader Lyle Jeffs was captured at a recreation area marina southwest of Sioux Falls.
Yankton County Chief Deputy Sheriff Michael Rothschadl says that Jeffs surrendered without incident Wednesday evening after a traffic stop. He says Jeffs was alone in the vehicle.
Rothschadl says law enforcement had been looking for a silver Ford pickup truck with Utah plates. An off-duty Yankton Police Department detective spotted the vehicle and believed it was Jeffs.
Rothschadl says police made the traffic stop as Jeffs drove through the marina after using a bathroom. Rothschadl says he doesn’t know why Jeffs was in southeast South Dakota.
Authorities had been looking for Jeffs since June 18, 2016, when he escaped from home confinement in Salt Lake City pending trial on charges in an alleged multimillion-dollar food stamp fraud scheme.
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8:39 a.m.
Polygamous sect leader Lyle Jeffs has been captured after being on the run for nearly a year.
FBI spokeswoman Sandra Barker said Thursday morning that Jeffs was arrested in South Dakota at about 8:30 p.m. Wednesday. No other details were provided.
Authorities had been looking for Jeffs since June 18, 2016, when he escaped from home confinement in Salt Lake City pending trial on charges in an alleged multimillion-dollar food stamp fraud scheme.
Jeffs is the brother of the sect’s highest leader, the imprisoned Warren Jeffs.
Prosecutors said Lyle Jeffs was a flight risk, but U.S. District Judge Ted Stewart let him out in early June 2016, citing the fact that 10 other defendants in the food stamp fraud case already out had complied with the court’s conditions.
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