Daughter of cult leader Warren Jeffs details sexual abuse
Rachel Jeffs, daughter of polygamist cult leader Warren Jeffs, visited Megyn Kelly Today, and for the first time on live TV, detailed the sexual abuse she suffered at the hands of her father.
Rachel Jeffs grew up in the cult run by her father, president of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. The leader had dozens of wives, some of whom were underage, and many more children. Rachel Jeffs explained that when she was 8 years old, her father began sexually abusing her and forced her to look at pornography.
Although her mother confronted the cult leader, the abuse continued for many years. When she was 18, Rachel Jeffs was married off to a man against her will.
In 2011, Warren Jeffs was arrested and sentenced to life in prison for sexually assaulting girls of 12 and 15. However, the leader of the cult maintained his control from prison and often punished his daughter by banishing her from the community and her children for months at a time.
In 2015, she escaped the cult with her children and has since married and integrated herself into the outside world. She gave a message of hope to women who may also be suffering. “I want women, no matter what situation they’re in, to know that they can be strong and use any hard experience they’re going through to make their life better and help others.”
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