Seven additional members of a Utah polygamous group are expected to take plea deals Wednesday in a multimillion-dollar food-stamp fraud case.
That would leave fugitive leader Lyle Jeffs and one other man with charges still pending in the case filed against 11 people. Prosecutors said they ran a scheme to misuse $12 million in food stamps, though defense attorneys argued they were following religious beliefs by donating benefits to their church.
The southern Utah hearing comes after high-ranking leaders Seth Jeffs and John Wayman pleaded guilty and were released from jail after six months.
Lyle Jeffs escaped home confinement this summer. Court records show all remaining defendants except for Nephi Steed Allred are set to appear at a change-of-plea hearing in St. George. His lawyers didn’t immediate respond to messages for comment.