Police Continue Search for Abused Teen

April 7, 2008 — -- As many as 533 women and children were removed from the West Texas compound built by polygamist leader Warren Jeffs, authorities said today.

An unknown number of men remain at the retreat in Eldorado and will not be permitted to leave until authorities complete a house-by-house search throughout the 1,700-acre compound, Texas Children's Protective Services spokeswoman Marleigh Meisner said.

"This is not about numbers. This is about children, children in imminent risk of harm," she said.

The children removed from the compound ranged in age from infants to 17-year-olds, she said.

"In my opinion, this is the largest endeavor we've ever been involved in in the state of Texas," Meisner said, adding that she was also involved in the 1993 siege of the Branch Davidian compound in Waco that left at least 86 people dead.

The original 200 women and children who were removed during the weekend are secure in nearby San Angelo, but officials said most are afraid to speak candidly about what happened inside their church.

Texas state police arrested one person early Monday during their search of a sect's compound but said he was not Dale Barlow, the 50-year-old man they are still hunting.

Department of Public Safety spokesman Tom Vinger told The Associated Press that he had no further information on the man who was arrested. Barlow is listed in warrants as being sought in connection with the marriage of an underage girl.

Meanwhile, Texas authorities struggled Monday to persuade the children removed from the group compound during the weekend to give them any information about what went on there.

"When children live in a pretty secluded environment and they're as sheltered as these children, it's very difficult to get them to talk to you and to open up. If you can get them to a neutral place, they're a lot more prone to answer you truthfully," Debra Brown told the AP. Brown is with a local child advocacy group representing the children in legal proceedings.

Police remained unsure if the teenage girl whose alleged crisis hotline call resulted in a raid on the compound was in custody. State troopers armed with a search warrant raided the ranch Friday to look for evidence of a marriage between Barlow and the teen.

The girl allegedly had a baby at 15, and under Texas law girls younger than 16 are unable to marry, even with parental consent, according to the AP.

Prosecutor Allison Palmer told the AP that other law enforcement agencies "know where [Barlow] is and have talked to him, but our investigators have not."

Barlow's probation officer, Bill Loader, told The Salt Lake Tribune that he was in Arizona. Last year, Barlow was sentenced to jail after pleading no contest to a conspiracy to commit sexual misconduct with a minor and was ordered to register as a sex offender for three years while he remained on probation, the AP reported.

The search warrant allowed officers to look for marriage records or any other evidence linking the teen to Barlow and the baby, including computer drives, CDs, DVDs and photos.

Police are questioning the women and children taken from the compound in the hopes that the missing teen girl is among them.