'Sarah' may be Colorado woman

AUSTIN, Texas, April 24 (UPI) -- The telephoned pleas for help that triggered a raid on an alleged polygamist ranch in Texas have been linked to a woman with a history of false accusations.

Rozita Swinton, 33, of Colorado Springs has been named a "person of interest" by authorities in Texas, the Deseret Morning News reported. Documents unsealed Wednesday said that calls purportedly from a teenager named "Sarah" had been made on a prepaid cell phone Swinton had used previously.

"Sarah" said she was 16 and had been forced to be the third wife of a 50-year-old man. She continued to make calls after the raid on the Yearning for Zion Ranch, saying she had been moved to another place.

Texas officials say they found proof at the ranch that girls were sexually abused by being forced into "marriages" with older men.

"That it was triggered by a call that appears to be a hoax does not affect the cases concerning the safety of the children," said Susan Hays of Dallas, a lawyer for one of the children.. "It might affect the criminal cases but not the civil cases concerning the custody and safety of the children."