By Tracie Sullivan, For Iron County Today
A Cedar City man has been arrested and charged with multiple felony offenses after a woman came forward alleging that he assaulted her inside his vehicle at multiple locations.
Lehi Rulon Jeffs, 20, was taken into custody on February 10 and booked into the Iron County Jail. He faces two first-degree felony charges — one for forcible sodomy and another for an object rape — along with misdemeanor counts of sexual battery, assault, and lewdness.
According to the court documents, the incident reportedly took place on January 29. Jeffs allegedly drove the victim to a secluded area near a construction site before later relocating to a public park and then outside the victim’s residence.
During the encounters, the victim told police she experienced a “freezing response” and did not consent to any of the alleged acts. She also described falling asleep.
“The victim did not give consent to any of the actions or say no. The victim also did not cooperate, but stayed still for the events,” the affidavit states. “The victim also told me that she fell asleep in-between events, I further believe this supports the victim’s freezing response.”
At one point, the victim attempted to exit the vehicle, but Jeffs allegedly grabbed her arm and tickled her. She told police he only stopped after she began crying due to the pain. Investigators later documented bruising on her arm, which she attributed to the encounter.
Jeffs reportedly acknowledged that the incidents took place but claimed they were consensual.
However, during the investigation, authorities interviewed at least two other women who reported similar encounters with Jeffs. They told police they were raised in the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (FLDS) community and had not been taught to assert personal boundaries, particularly in physical relationships.
The women explained to the investigator that in the FLDS culture, women are raised to be obedient to men and are not taught to assert personal boundaries, especially regarding physical relationships.
“The victims told me that they and Lehi had grown up in a culture they identified as FLDS. The victims explained to me that in that culture, women are not supposed to tell men no or go against them,” court documents state. “They also explained to me that growing up they are not taught about anything sexual so they did not know what was going on, when Lehi started assaulting them.”
Authorities believe Jeffs exploited these cultural norms to manipulate and control his victims, knowing they were unlikely to resist or report his actions.
Although investigators believe there are additional victims, those cases fall outside of Iron County’s jurisdiction, preventing local law enforcement from filing further charges.
During the investigation, police executed a search warrant on Jeffs’ phone, which allegedly contained messages discussing plans to flee the country to avoid prosecution.
“Lehi has told multiple people that he is looking to flee the country due to these charges,” the affidavit states, adding that investigators had obtained screenshots of text messages in which Jeffs outlined possible escape routes.
Officers also uncovered a message in which Jeffs allegedly described a plan to abduct a woman and escape through mountain borders.
Prosecutors have requested that Jeffs be held without bail due to the severity of the allegations, the risk of witness tampering, and the possibility of him fleeing the country.
“There are also other charges from similar cases with other agencies with the same and different victims that are still being investigated,” the affidavit states.
Jeffs remains in custody at the Iron County Jail. Additional cases have been referred to other jurisdictions for investigation, though it is unclear which agencies are handling those cases. His initial court appearance is pending.