Seven more members of polygamous sect expected to plead guilty in food-stamp fraud case [View all]

Seven more members of the polygamous Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints are expected to enter guilty pleas on Wednesday morning in a federal food-stamp fraud case.

The U.S. District Court docket shows the seven defendants — Kimball Dee Barlow, Winford Johnson Barlow, Rulon Mormon Barlow, Ruth Peine Barlow, Hyrum Bygnal Duston, Kristal Meldrum Dutson and Preston Yates Barlow — are scheduled for a change-of-plea hearing before Magistrate Judge Robert Braithwaite in St. George.

The seven are among 11 FLDS members charged earlier this year with one count of conspiracy to defraud the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and one count of conspiracy to launder money, both felonies, for allegedly diverting millions of dollars worth of their benefits. All have pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Last month, two defendants, John Wayman and Seth Steed Jeffs, pleaded guilty under plea deals to a felony charge of unlawfully using Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits and were immediately sentenced to time served.

Read more: http://www.sltrib.com/news/4775847-155/seven-more-members-of-polygamous-sect