Polygamous sect rebuffs state's report

ELDORADO, Texas, Dec. 28 (UPI) -- Members of a polygamous sect in Texas says when their ranch was raided by authorities their temple was desecrated and officials pushed them into poverty.

The Salt Lake Tribune reported Sunday that members of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints say the search of their ranch near Eldorado, Texas, was a "fishing expedition" aimed at driving them out of the state.

"These families have literally given everything in an attempt to save their children," said Willie Jessop, who issued the statement on behalf of the sect. "There has to be a reimbursement to an American family that has been proven to have done nothing wrong but was put through this trauma."

Patrick Crimmins, spokesman for the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, said the state's "investigation was very thorough," and that officials stand by it.

Authorities raided the Yearning for Zion ranch April 3, five days after a domestic violence shelter received calls about an abused teenager. The calls are now believed to be a hoax.

On Tuesday, Texas officials released a 21-page report that said its investigation at the ranch led to evidence that 12 girls were "spiritually" married between the ages of 12 and 15. Of those, seven have at least one child.