Teen allegedly kidnapped from Mexican community {Colonia Labaron family}

[walton]

Teen allegedly kidnapped from Mexican community
Ransom » $1 million sought from Colonia LeBaron family
By Brooke Adams

The family of a teenager allegedly kidnapped from Colonia LeBaron says it has refused to pay $1 million ransom demanded by his abductors, instead launching a mass appeal to government officials for help rescuing him and protecting the town.

Eric LeBaron, 16, was taken from the family's ranch in the mountains above the town, established decades ago by an exiled polygamist from Utah, on Saturday at gunpoint by five masked men, said Benjamin LeBaron, an older brother, in a telephone interview. The kidnappers allowed a younger brother to return to their father, Joel LeBaron Jr. Since then, they have contacted the family several times threatening to kill the boy if the ransom is not paid.

http://www.sltrib.com/news/ci_12291792

[walton]

Very interesting read. At the age of 17 Herber was almost kidnapped twice. Also interesting is the repeated history of members in these cults.

http://www.mazeministry.com/mormonis...ntestimony.htm

[walton]

http://www.reviewjournal.com/lvrj_ho.../22438763.html

IN DEPTH: THE DYS-ORDER

Despite polygamous family's many financial holdings, some sister wives live like impoverished single mothers
By DAVE BERNS
Written in 2003

Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff has vowed to end the physical and sexual abuse tied to polygamy.

"We are not going after polygamy. We are going after crimes being committed in polygamous societies," said Shurtleff, who has polygamous ancestors.

Lu Ann's ex-husband, Jeremy, pled guilty Thursday to incest for his relationship with the then-teenage girl. He was 24 at the time. According to the terms of a plea bargain, the third-degree felony will be reduced to a misdemeanor if Jeremy Kingston successfully completes probation. Prosecutors have agreed to not seek a prison sentence of more than a year. Sentencing is scheduled for Jan. 5.

Shurtleff's office aggressively pursued the case after the freshman attorney general learned of the physical, social and sexual abuse of teenage wives through meetings with social activists and former child brides, including Lu Ann Kingston, whom he characterizes as highly credible.

"It just bothers me. I don't know why there haven't been efforts in the past. I'm not going to sit back knowing these crimes and abuses have been committed," Shurtleff said.


Here is a list of the Kingston wives along with the number of children each woman had back in 2003.

http://www.reviewjournal.com/lvrj_ho...os/11polyg.jpg

6 years ago this was written. Six years of watching the victim list grow.

[walton]

Police: Pair attacked Gardner, left him to die

By KATHRYN MARCHOCKI
New Hampshire Union Leader Staff
Wednesday, Mar. 4, 2009

A pair of convicted felons last month ambushed former Manchester businessman Richard J. Gardner aboard his boat in the Florida Keys, where he was left to die inside a locked cabin, Florida authorities said yesterday.

Jonathan L. LeBaron, 32, of Salt Lake City, Utah, is charged with first-degree premeditated murder in the Feb. 10 slaying of Gardner, 57.

LeBaron and his girlfriend, Kristena Whitmore, 40, of Oregon, have been held in a Salt Lake County jail since they were arrested at a Midvale, Utah motel on Feb. 21.


http://www.unionleader.com/article.a...7-5130540bcd0d


LeBarons girlfriend Kristena Whitmore said she advertised on Craigslist.

more info here:http://www.keysso.net/pio/crimerepor...%20release.pdf

[walton]

Trent Nelson over at the Salt Lake tribune takes us there. Here is a picture of Willie in the middle of a smiling crowd in front of the courthouse at a UEP hearing.



http://166.70.44.68/blogs/photo/2008...t-uep-hearing/

What I want to know is that same crowd smiling?

Are they still talking?

Do people have a right to the property even though they signed an agreement with Rulon/Warren/Rod?

Could they get their monies back?

What if no one has a receipt?

Is Willies house up for grabs as well?

Should Bruce Wisan be allowed to lease the property? Sell the property? Sell it to who? The neighbor next door?

Is the YFZ part of the UEP?

[walton]

I wonder if any or all of these LeBarons are somehow related?

A Cedar City man has been arrested in connection with the pipe bombings that took place in the early spring.

Aaron Benjamin LeBaron, 19, was arrested Friday and charged with two counts of detonating a pipe bomb, both first-degree felonies, and two additional felony counts of criminal mischief. Other arrests are possible, police said.


http://findarticles.com/p/articles/m.../?tag=untagged

I believe they are still looking for JACQUELINE TARSA LeBARON

http://www.fbi.gov/wanted/fugitives/cei/lebaron_jt.htm

[juliekan]

http://www.deseretnews.com/article/1...301436,00.html

Judge may schedule new trial in murder case

Third District Judge Royal Hansen said he will decide by June 10 whether to schedule a new trial or sentence Parley Jeffs Dutson.

Defense attorneys say Dutson deserves a new trial because one female juror did not disclose during jury selection that she had been raped at age 15.

Defense attorney McCaye Christianson told the judge Monday it was "highly unlikely" this juror would have served on the jury if she had disclosed that she had been the victim of a crime.

[juliekan]

oops, did I post on the wrong thread...too late to delete...will just repost on other thread.

[walton]

Sources in Mexico tell 3TV that the son of one of the most famous polygamist families has been kidnapped in Chihuahua.

Eric LeBaron, 16, was recently kidnapped near the little Mexican village that bears his family's name, Colonial LeBaron.

According to Eric's older brother, Benjamin LeBaron, Eric was abducted by a group of heavily armed men. Those men are now demanding a $1 million ransom.


http://www.azfamily.com/news/local/s....1ba32644.html

Brooke posted on her blog: A state prosecutor in Chihuahua, Mexico, told The Salt Lake Tribune today a special police unit that investigates kidnappings has been assigned to the case of Eric LeBaron but there are no results yet and the investigation remains ongoing.

http://166.70.44.68/blogs/plurallife/

[walton]

The author Susan Ray Schmidt has/had a sister married to Joel LeBaron Jr. the father of the missing boy.

http://search.barnesandnoble.com/boo...%20Ray+Schmidt

[walton]

This is an old article but there is LOTS of info in here.


ERVIL'S FOLLOWERS MURDER ROUTINELY
IN 20 YEARS, 18 EX-ASSOCIATES HAVE BEEN SLAIN OR REPORTED MISSING
By Lee Davidson, Staff Writer
Published: Tuesday, June 28, 1988


http://archive.deseretnews.com/archi...D-MISSING.html

[walton]

According to some of the articles that have come out about the missing teen there are some things that are missing.

Who are the parents?

Where did the 5 masked men come into the picture and take the boys? Where the two boys alone or where they with a group of people?

Where did the 5 men release the one? Why did they release one and keep one? It isn't like they aren't calling them. They've been in contact.

Where they driving a vehicle or were they walking?

[walton]

This was written in 2006

Ervil realized the game was up. He gathered his henchmen around him and revealed that God wanted blood atonement for the false prophet.

"We are going to blow him up like a balloon," he railed, according to Anderson.

The men bided their time for a couple of months before paying Simons a last and fatal visit. On the drive out to Simon's ranch, Ervil's goons stopped by a gardening store to buy pickaxes, shovels and a bag of chemicals that hasten the deterioration of human flesh. They stopped again to dig a coffin-sized hole in the desert hills.

Simons knew they were coming - one of Ervil's emissaries, Lloyd Sullivan, had called on him a few days a before, claiming he now believed Simons was the true prophet after a conversation he'd had with some Indian chiefs. The chiefs had been searching for the white prophet who would lead them to salvation for a long time, the emissary said. Simons was ecstatic.

http://www.rickross.com/reference/po...lygamy506.html

[walton]

Kidnapped boy from polygamous family returned home
By Ben Winslow
Deseret News


A 16-year-old boy from the LeBaron polygamous family kidnapped in rural Mexico has been returned home, apparently safe.

Family members confirmed to the Deseret News late Saturday night that Eric LeBaron was released on Saturday, a week after he was abducted at gunpoint by masked men near Colonia LeBaron.

"The kid told his parents that they didn't hurt him, they treated him good," said Irene Spencer, who is the aunt of Eric LeBaron's father, Joel LeBaron Jr. "They let him go and he walked for four hours before he could find someone to help him phone home. They have him, he's safe."



http://www.deseretnews.com/article/7...rned-home.html

[texski]

are these people who have been living in mexico for generations american citizens?? i am sure you who keep track of these polygamists know this, but i dont.
glad the young man was not injured. imo he was returned because of too much publicity and pressure on the police.
how do they make a living??? farming??? if not mexican citizens they cannot have jobs there can they?? do they have a church building on this compound?? are any of the people legally married???
where can i go to get this kind of information?? i am very curious, i grew up in the mexican/texas border towns , a long time ago, but still have some relatives there. i emailed them and they dont know anything about this group.

[walton]

I don't think we've heard the whole story.

I don't think we will hear the whole story.

[walton]

http://www.azfamily.com/sharedconten...my/index3.html

Mike Watkiss visits with Eric LeBaron and learns the details concerning the how the kidnapping took place and some of what took place while he was held captive.


I personally think there is more that we are not hearing.

[walton]

http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=6845389
Former LDS temple president kidnapped in Mexico
June 16th, 2009 @ 10:25pm
By Ben Winslow


The former president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints' temple in Chihuahua, Mexico, has been kidnapped.

Sources confirmed to KSL NewsRadio late Tuesday that Meredith Romney was abducted from his ranch property nar Janos. Romney, a distant relative of former Salt Lake Olympics chief and one-time presidential candidate Mitt Romney, was abducted Monday afternoon.

The U.S. State Department, the FBI and Mexican authorities are working jointly on the investigation.

Romney's nephew, professional bull-rider Rocky McDonald told Professional Bull Riders in an article posted on ESPN.com that masked gunmen shot out the tires of Romney's truck.

[walton]

http://www.deseretnews.com/article/7...in-Mexico.html
Kidnap victim freed in Mexico
Family of ex-temple president paid his abductors a ransom
By Ethan Thomas

After family members paid a ransom, kidnappers on Wednesday released a former LDS temple president who played a role in then-church President Gordon B. Hinckley's plan to build smaller temples — a plan that launched an extraordinary construction program to double the number of the faith's holiest buildings in 39 months.

Meredith Irvin Romney was kidnapped Monday afternoon while leaving his ranch outside of Janos, Mexico, with his wife and grandson. A vehicle cut off Romney's truck, and gunmen shot out the truck's tires.

[disneyfreak]

Very interesting links as I'm in the middle of reading Susan Ray Schmidt's book. Thanks for posting the most recent update, Walton.

[walton]

Originally Posted by disneyfreak

Very interesting links as I'm in the middle of reading Susan Ray Schmidt's book. Thanks for posting the most recent update, Walton.

disneyfreak your nic made me smile. I've read Susans book His Favorite Wife. Good book! and lots of info.

[walton]

http://www.sltrib.com/news/ci_12769262

Benjamin LeBaron, who called for more protection from the Mexican government in May after his younger brother was abducted from Colonia LeBaron, was taken by intruders and killed with another man early Tuesday.

[walton]

http://www.azfamily.com/news/local/s....18fe6e6f.html

Benjamin Franklin LeBaron Ray, at the age of thirty two years old, and Luis Carlos Widmar Stubbs, at the age of twenty eight, joined the S.O.S. Chihuahua, and Benji was the foremost leader of this movement. He helped organize committees, and worked with all the communities in the northwest quarter of Chihuahua to put a stop to kidnapping and extortion.


Does this mean that Benjamins legal last name is Ray?

and Luis's legal name is Stubbs?


Luis and Benjamin were taken up the road about four miles, where they were stood up and shot, execution style, and above them was placed a sign that stated, “To the LeBaron leaders who did not believe and still do not believe, and to Clary Jones. This is for the twenty five men from Nicolas Bravo. Atte. El General”.




I've been all over the net trying to figure this one out. I just can't wrap my brain around the thought the reasons why people are doing this.

Money? Drugs for a high? Revenge because the 25 got busted?

[walton]

http://www.postmormon.org/exp_e/inde.../16487/#298207

Check out the comments.

Why would the LeBarons threaten anyone from Centennial Park?

[texski]

from reading the article about the two killings, i am assuming that they can still claim american because their parents were from america?? and also claim to be mexican because they were born in mexico?? something is wrong with those sentences, but that is the only way i know off that they could be citizens of both countries. i know that americans are not allowed to own land in mexico or work there, maybe they threatened to come back to utah and take back some of that land, that would be fun to watch.

[walton]

Am I missing something with this story?

Eric LeBaron and his brother (Ben?) were kidnapped by a group that hid in the mountains. They let Erics brother go and held Eric for 7 days. Blindfolded him, kept him on the move, made sure he got a little to eat and then set him free after 7 days unharmed.

After he had been home for a few days the family and others approached the govt. and asked for help with the "kidnappings" in the area.

A month later a group storms Benjamins house not only shooting into the home but brought an axe to break down the door. They then take Benjamin and his brother-in-law out into the country side and shot them and left their bodies there with a note.

Not to sound cold but why did they have to take the two men out in the country? Why not just do it at the house?

Where they after information?

Why would this group come after Benjamin? Why has the LeBaron family been targeted not once but twice?

This is messed up.

[walton]

Originally Posted by texski

from reading the article about the two killings, i am assuming that they can still claim american because their parents were from america?? and also claim to be mexican because they were born in mexico?? something is wrong with those sentences, but that is the only way i know off that they could be citizens of both countries. i know that americans are not allowed to own land in mexico or work there, maybe they threatened to come back to utah and take back some of that land, that would be fun to watch.

But what/who would the connection be? Johnsons?

[walton]

Several thousand people attended services for Benjamin LeBaron, 32, and Luis Widmar, 29, in Colonia LeBaron, a community founded by a relative who moved from Utah to Mexico in the 1920s to escape a crackdown on plural marriage. The crowd filled the town's tiny church and spilled into the surrounding yard and street, a cousin told The Salt Lake Tribune , as police and army officers stood guard.

Chihuahua Gov. José Reyes Baeza Terrazas attended the private family viewing before the funeral, Brent LeBaron Jr. said.

"He was very passionate and saying he was there for us, that he was going to push for everything to continue helping us, and that this might be the [catalyst] for getting better resources to attack the problem quickly," said Brent LeBaron, Benjamin's cousin.

Mexican media quoted Baeza on Thursday saying the United States FBI would assist in the murder investigation because of the men's dual citizenship. And Mexico's attorney general's office said it would take over the investigation, calling it a high-impact crime.

http://www.sltrib.com/news/ci_12804715

Brooke clears up a few things on her blog. http://166.70.44.68/blogs/plurallife/