Polygamist leader charged over underage marriages

An elder of a polygamist sect and two other church members surrendered to Texas authorities to face charges over the marriage of underage girls to older men.

Fredrick (correct) “Merril” Jessop, 72, a leader of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, who oversaw its Yearning For Zion Ranch in west Texas, faces one count of conducting an unlawful marriage ceremony involving a minor on July 27, 2006 – the same day one of his daughters was allegedly married to jailed FLDS leader Warren Jeffs.