State and local law enforcement officers went to the ranch late Thursday with an armored personnel carrier, the Eldorado Success reported. Police set up roadblocks and blocked off the entrances and exits to the compound. Air space above the ranch was restricted, preventing small planes or helicopters from flying overhead.

Police described the FLDS people on the ranch as cooperative.

"They're being cooperative and providing us with all the people we need to speak to," said Vinger. "It's sensitive, but it's going well."

The YFZ Ranch is the site of the polygamous sect's first-ever temple, which was completed in 2006. "YFZ" stands for "Yearning for Zion," after a song penned by FLDS leader Warren Jeffs.

The group purchased the 1,600-acre property several years ago under the guise that it would be a "hunting retreat." Since then, a small city has been built on the outskirts of Eldorado, a western Texas prairie town. Few outsiders are allowed onto the ranch, but viewed from the air — the growth of the YFZ Ranch is stunning. Men, women and children are frequently seen working in the fields or constructing buildings.

Faced with the history of the deadly stand-off at Waco, Schleicher County Sheriff David Doran has tried to build relationships with members of the FLDS Church. He has kept in communication with them during key moments of the government crackdown on the polygamous church. It was Doran who broke the news to them about Jeffs' arrest and the polygamist's conviction in Utah last year on rape as an accomplice.

Jeffs is serving two 5-to-life sentences for performing a marriage between a 14-year-old girl and her 19-year-old cousin. He is currently in Arizona, where he faces charges of sexual misconduct and incest, accusing him of performing more child-bride marriages. Prior to his capture, Jeffs was on the FBI's Ten Most Wanted list.

Doran declined to comment on the raid when reached at the compound by the Deseret Morning News on Friday. Texas child welfare workers insisted this was not religious persecution or a crackdown on polygamy.

"We are only interested in protecting children from abuse and neglect," Azar said. "Child protective services has treated this case just like any of the thousands of cases we handle each year. The only difference is the setting and the number of children involved."

In southern Utah, Washington County Sheriff Kirk Smith was consulting with Texas authorities on the raid.

"I've been working with Sheriff Doran, giving him background information on people and the group," he told the Deseret Morning News.

Late Friday night, Washington County sheriff's deputies reallocated their patrols closer to the Hildale area. Deputies said it was just in case anyone needed help.

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E-mail: bwinslow@desnews.com