Netflix doc lifts lid on abuse that occurred in extremist Mormon cult

Former members of fundamentalist Mormon cult detail the horrific abuse they faced at the hands of pedophile ‘prophet’ Warren Jeffs – who had 78 WIVES and raped multiple children, while telling them it was the only way they could be ‘saved’

• Jeffs, now 66, has served as the president of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (FLDS) since 2002
• A new Netflix documentary, Keep Sweet: Pray and Obey, is set to expose the heinous crimes that Jeffs committed throughout his ruling over the church
• FLDS was created in the early 20th century by a group of Mormons got ostracized from the community because they refused to give up polygamy 
• Jeffs, who became its prophet in 2002, brainwashed, imprisoned, and abused multiple women and children, earning him a spot on the FBI’s Most Wanted List
• He had 78 wives, 24 of which were children, when he was arrested in 2008. He was convicted of two felony counts of child sexual assault in 2011
• He is currently serving a life sentence for the charges, however, it’s been reported that he has continued to run the cult from behind bars

A new documentary is set to expose the horrific sexual and physical abuse that took place inside an extremist Mormon cult run by a pedophile who had 78 wives and raped multiple underage girls. 

Warren Jeffs, now 66 – who has served as the president of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (FLDS) since 2002 – had more than 70 wives, 24 of whom were underage children, when he was arrested in 2008.

Now, a new Netflix documentary, Keep Sweet: Pray and Obey, will lift a lid on the heinous crimes that Jeffs – who is reportedly still running the cult from behind bars – committed while serving as the self-appointed leader of the fundamentalist arm of the church.

FLDS was created in the early 20th century by a group of Mormons who got ostracized from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints because they refused to give up polygamy – the act of marrying multiple women.

Polygamy was renounced from the Mormon religion in 1904, when the then-president of the church said it would no longer be allowed in a declaration known as the Second Manifesto.

A Netflix documentary is set to expose the horrific abuse that occurred in an extremist Mormon cult run by a pedophile (pictured in 2011) who married and raped numerous children

Warren Jeffs (pictured with some of his victims), now 66, has served as the president of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (FLDS) since 2002

A new Netflix documentary, entitled Keep Sweet: Pray and Obey, is going to lift a lid on the heinous crimes that Jeffs – who had 78 wives, 24 of which were children – committed

FLDS was created by a group of Mormons got ostracized from the community because they refused to give up polygamy. Kids of the cult members are pictured in the Netflix doc

They started FLDS in 1930, and Jeffs took over as the prophet of the church in 2002, following the death of his father, Rulon Jeffs, who had 20 wives and 60 children when he passed

However, some members of the community didn’t want to stop the practice since they believed that ‘the more wives and children you have, the higher in Heaven you’ll be,’ according to the documentary, which premieres on the streaming site on Wednesday.  

A trailer for the doc sheds some light on the heinous abuse that Jeffs’ victims suffered, with one survivor recalling in the clip how she was forced to marry an adult man when she was just 14 years old. 

Another ex-member revealed they were told the abuse they were subjected to was all being done ‘for their salvation’, recalling: ‘We did whatever it took, even if it was wrong.’ 

‘Young girls were like a commodity owned by the church,’ another person added.  

Throughout the years that he ran FLDS, Jeffs (pictured in 2010) brainwashed, imprisoned, and abused multiple women and children, earning him a spot on the FBI’s Top 10 Most Wanted List

FLDS was first founded in 1930, and Jeffs took over as the prophet of the church in 2002, following the death of his father, Rulon Jeffs, who had 20 wives and approximately 60 children when he passed.

Throughout the years that he ran FLDS – which has bases in Hildale, Utah, and Colorado City, Arizona, collectively known as Short Creek, as well as one in Eldorado, Texas, which is called the Yearning for Zion Ranch – Jeffs brainwashed, imprisoned, and abused multiple women and children, earning him a spot on the FBI’s Top 10 Most Wanted List.

In 2005, he was charged with sexual assault of a minor and conspiracy to commit sexual misconduct with a minor after he allegedly forced a then-14-year-old girl to marry her 19-year-old cousin.

During the trial, the young girl claimed that her husband raped and impregnated her numerous times, however, the charges were eventually dismissed.

According to CNN, the case was dropped in 2010 by the prosecutor, after Jeffs was arrested for ‘much more serious charges.’ 

In 2006, he was also charged with felony accomplice to the rape of a teenage girl. He was found guilty, however, the conviction was later overturned by the Utah Supreme Court, who claimed there was a mistake in jury instructions.

Police stormed the Zion Ranch in 2008 and arrested Jeffs for a third time, after they found over 400 children and evidence of ‘sexual, physical, and psychological abuse,’ Rolling Stone reported.

In 2011, he was sent away for life after he was convicted of two felony counts of child sexual assault for having sex with two girls aged 12 and 14.

He is currently serving a life sentence plus 20 years for the charges, however, it’s been reported that Jeffs has continued to preach to FLDS’ remaining members from his prison cell.

As of 2018, the Guardian reported that there were still around 10,000 active members of the church.

In 2011, Jeffs (pictured in 2006) was convicted of two felony counts of child sexual assault for having sex with two girls aged 12 and 14

Many of Jeffs’ former victims – most of whom have since left the cult but still live in Short Creek – have now spoken out and shared their stories for the upcoming four-part docuseries, which was directed by Rachel Dretzin.

‘The first time I traveled to Short Creek, Utah, I had the same first impression as most,’ Dretzin said in a statement to Rolling Stone.

‘With their pleated hair, prairie dresses, and diffident, skittish manner, it was easy to see the young girls and women of the FLDS as odd, even alien creatures. 

‘It was almost impossible to believe that a society so repressive, isolated, and extreme could exist in plain sight in 21st century America.

‘And then I began interviewing survivors. The stories they told – of the process of systematic coercion and mind control exercised by the man they thought of as a religious prophet, Warren Jeffs – were far from alienating. 

‘After many months spent reporting this story, it was clear to me that these women could have been my daughter, my mother, or me. 

‘And it was also abundantly clear that they showed incredible courage and strength in leaving this religion-turned-criminal cult.’

Dretzin described the women as ‘bada**’ and ‘fierce,’ adding that she was ‘proud’ to tell their story.

Jeffs (pictured before his arrest) is currently serving a life sentence for the charges, however, it’s been reported that he has continued to preach to FLDS’ remaining members from prison

Many of Jeffs’ former victims – most of which left the cult – have now spoken out and shared their stories for the upcoming four-part docuseries, which was directed by Rachel Dretzin

Dretzin described the women as ‘bada**’ and ‘fierce,’ adding that she was ‘proud’ to tell their story. One of his former victims is pictured in the docuseries

‘The women in our film managed to leave the FLDS with no real education or skills, no money, no support whatsoever,’ she explained.

‘For their whole lives they had been valued solely as plural wives and as breeders of children.

‘To leave meant saying goodbye to everything and everyone they loved to start over in a society they didn’t understand. Bada** doesn’t begin to describe how fierce they are.’

According to the Daily Beast, Dretzin tells Jeffs’ story ‘with virtually no dramatic recreations, instead relying on a haunting collection of archival photos, home videos, courtroom footage, and recorded evidence to convey the unnerving strangeness of FLDS life.’

The outlet added, ‘That material culminates with clandestine photographs and audio tapes made by Jeffs of his sexual encounters with his victims, which are so predictably disgusting that it’s no surprise they landed him behind bars, where he continues to create “revelations” that are disseminated to his followers.’

One woman, whose identity is unknown, could be heard saying in the trailer, ‘In our minds, the police, even the president of the United States had no authority over us.

‘Warren Jeffs was our president. He was the Prophet. And how could you place a human over God?’

Another person stated, ‘To stand up against a multi-million-dollar church, you’re going up against a lifetime of conditioning and fear. Warren Jeffs took over this religion and turned it into money and power and sex.’

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