Warren Jeffs, pictured September 2007, the head of a U.S. polygamist sect, was jailed for five years to life on Tuesday following his conviction on rape charges over the marriage of a schoolgirl against her will to a cousin. (AFP File Photo)
BEIJING, Nov. 21 -- A head of a U.S. polygamist sect was jailed for five years to life on Tuesday following his conviction on rape charges over the marriage of a schoolgirl against her will to a cousin, media reports said Wednesday.
Warren Jeffs, 51, the leader of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, or FLDS, was found guilty in September on two counts of acting as an accomplice to rape.
At a sentencing hearing in St George, 300 miles (480 kilometers) south of Salt Lake City on Tuesday, Jeffs was given consecutive terms of five years to life for each offense.
The Utah Board of Pardons and Parole will eventually determine how long Jeffs spends in prison.
Jeffs, a self-proclaimed prophet whose followers believe he is descended from Jesus Christ, was arrested in August 2006 outside of Las Vegas after being included on the FBI's "Ten Most Wanted" list.
Prosecutors at his trial, which took place under blanket security, said Jeffs was guilty because he had ordered the 14-year-old victim to get married and have sex with her 19-year-old cousin despite her objections.
Defense attorneys said Jeffs did nothing other than offering routine advice to his accuser, who is now 21.
Jeffs may now face trial in Arizona, where he has been charged with four counts of accomplice to rape and incest relating to the marriages of two young girls to relatives. Because of the pending legal action in Arizona, Jeffs was advised against making a statement at his sentencing hearing.
Polygamy, or "plural marriage," is a key plank of the FLDS church, but was not an issue in Jeffs' trial.
Jeffs' followers claimed their leader was prosecuted because of the FLDS's beliefs about polygamy, which is opposed by Mormons and illegal under U.S. law.
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