Jeffs in Nevada jail

"Isaac is Warren's full brother, and he's just pretty much been a 'go fetch it' sort of person," said ex-FLDS member Carolyn Jessop, whose stepdaughter is Naomi Jessop Jeffs.

She described Naomi Jeffs as a beautiful woman with long blond hair going down to her knees. In addition to being one of Warren Jeffs' wives, Naomi, 32, was also at one time one of his "mothers."

"She was married to Rulon when she was 17 and she was Rulon's favorite wife," Jessop said Tuesday. "She was one of the first of Rulon's wives to marry Warren."

When Rulon Jeffs passed away in 2002 at the age of 92, Warren took a dozen of his father's wives as his own.

FLDS in Nevada

Inside the Escalade, authorities found $54,000 in cash, a police scanner, more than a dozen cell phones, portable radios, wigs, sunglasses, laptop computers, gift cards, a GPS device, a Book of Mormon and a picture of Warren Jeffs and his father, Rulon.

"There were letters addressed to 'The Prophet,"' said McCarley. "Obviously those were indicators that an individual in that vehicle could be Warren Jeffs."

Jeffs is believed to have been sheltered through a network of safe houses. He has been on the run since he was charged in Utah and Arizona with sex crimes accusing him of forcing teenage girls into polygamous marriages with older men. Federal prosecutors have charged him with unlawful flight to avoid prosecution. When the FBI added him to their Ten Most Wanted list, a $100,000 reward was offered for information leading to his arrest.

"The arrest is a major step toward ending Jeffs' tyrannical rule in Colorado City and in the FLDS," said Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard. "He showed flagrant disregard for subpoenas and arrest warrants and told his followers the law didn't apply to him. His arrest should make it clear to everyone that Jeffs, like all the rest of us, is subject to the rule of law."

Recently, the FLDS Church has begun expanding into Nevada, which may explain why Jeffs was in the area. FLDS-linked businesses have closed down in Hildale, Utah, and Colorado City, Ariz., and relocated to areas like Mesquite and Las Vegas.

"I was sure that he came through Vegas all the time," said Gary Engels, a special investigator for the Mohave County Attorney's Office who has been investigating crimes in Colorado City. "He has a lot of people there. He can go unnoticed there."

FLDS enclaves quiet

People who live in the polygamous border towns of Hildale and Colorado City described the town as quiet.

"People are out working in their yards, they may not even know," said ex-FLDS member Andrew Chatwin, who drove around town and described to the Deseret Morning News a number of closed restaurants and shops.