US embassy cable - 05VANCOUVER1558

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 VANCOUVER 001558 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT G/TIP FOR WENDY OWEN 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: CASC, PHUM, KWMN, PGOV, PREL, CA 
SUBJECT: UTAH AG SEEKS ALLY IN B.C. AGAINST FDLS 
 
SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED 
 
 1. (U ) Summary:  On December 8, 2005, Utah Attorney General 
Mark Shurtleff met in Vancouver with British Columbia Attorney 
General Wally Oppal.  Shurtleff traveled here to discuss the 
possibility of mutual cooperation in matters related to the 
Fundamentalist Church of Latter Day Saints (FLDS).   Shurtleff 
later met with the Consul General and selected Consulate staff 
to offer us a readout on his meeting.   The attorneys general 
appear to have laid a firm basis for future cooperation. 
Shurtleff had a full schedule in Vancouver, appearing on talk 
radio and meeting with an influential women's civic 
organization, the editorial board of The Vancouver Sun and with 
other local contacts.  His presence drew out the influential 
excommunicated FDLS bishop Winston Blackmore, who staged a 
successful media campaign of his own.  End Summary. 
 
2.  (U)  Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff told us that his 
discussion with Wally Oppal focused on crimes against women and 
children.  He said he presented Oppal with a large book his 
office had produced on legal techniques for dealing with crimes 
thought to be associated with the FDLS such as sexual assault on 
minors, trafficking in women, and spousal abuse.  Shurtleff 
characterized prosecutions against FDLS members as extremely 
difficult to obtain due to the reluctance of witnesses to 
cooperate with police.  He thought Oppal was willing to 
prosecute such crimes in British Columbia if witnesses would 
step forward. 
 
3.  (U)  Shurtleff also wants Oppal's cooperation in the search 
for and possible apprehension of Warren Jeffs, leader of the 
FDLS.  Jeffs has been parts unknown since Arizona issued 
warrants for his arrest on criminal charges dealing with 
assisting in sexual assaults on minors through arranging 
"celestial marriages" of girls in their early teens.  Jeffs is 
also the subject of civil warrants in Utah in a case brought by 
his nephew for sodomy and rape.  Shurtleff said Oppal had agreed 
to look into formalizing a mutual legal assistance agreement 
with the State of Utah that would allow enforcement in British 
Columbia of certain types of orders of Utah courts.  Execution 
of Utah arrest warrants and even subpoena powers were also 
discussed in their meeting. 
 
4.  (SBU) When asked, Shurtleff gave us a detailed breakdown of 
what he hopes to obtain by his actions in relation to the FDLS. 
He said he hopes "the United Effort Plan (UEP) will become a 
nullity."  The UEP is the FDLS trust fund, estimated to be worth 
$130 million, which has been placed in court-ordered 
receivership by Utah courts.  Shurtleff hopes the trust fund 
will devolve back to FDLS members through grants of land and 
money by the court-appointed trustee.  Shurtleff also hopes to 
obtain Jeffs' arrest and conviction.  The Utah AG concluded, 
however, that polygamy will continue to exist. 
 
5.  (SBU)  Other areas of interest to Shurtleff include whether 
FDLS members can be found guilty of trafficking in people, 
whether child labor laws are being breached by the cult, and 
whether any of the businesses associated with Bountiful are 
hiring illegal aliens.  He said Oppal had concluded after 
investigation that no one in the Bountiful commune was guilty of 
welfare fraud. 
 
6.  (U)  The Consul General and Consular Section Chief pointed 
out that USG interest in the FLDS issue is based on our concern 
that the Bountiful community under a desperate Jeffs might take 
an apocalyptic route similar to Jonestown, that US citizens in 
the community are routinely crossing the Canada/US border 
undocumented and uninspected, that trafficking in people may be 
occurring, and that the operation of the commune appears to be 
producing disadvantaged US citizens (people with almost no 
formal education and incapable of functioning in a free 
society). 
 
7.  (U)  Winston Blackmore came to Vancouver and succeeded in 
gaining much of the spotlight.  He sat in on the Utah AG's press 
conference, having obtained press credentials as a reporter for 
the website he operates.  He and four of his wives insinuated 
themselves into a meeting the University Women had organized 
with Shurtleff.  The flamboyant bishop also gave his own press 
conference while in town, denying all allegations of child abuse 
at Bountiful.   His wives dutifully proclaimed their 
satisfaction with polygamy and claimed no knowledge of child 
abuse.  None of Blackmore's 102 children attended the events. 
 
8.  (U)  According to local  press reports when asked by a 
reporter whether he would encourage any of his flock to come 
forward with information regarding child abuse, Blackmore said 
"I certainly wouldn't encourage them not to go forward."  Media 
coverage of the day's events was extensive, with Blackmore 
getting more ink than Shurtleff in The Province.  The Vancouver 
Sun covered the story on its front page. 
 
9.  (U)  Comment:  Shurtleff hopes to gain in Wally Oppal an 
active partner against the FLDS for two reasons: the Utah AG 
needs BC support to enforce Utah's seizure of the UEP assets in 
Canada and there are credible reports that Warren Jeffs has 
visited British Columbia several times this year, collecting 
funds and continuing to join FDLS members in "celestial 
weddings."   Whether Oppal will cooperate with Shurtleff or will 
take any independent action against FLDS in British Columbia 
remains to be seen. 
LUKENS