James Harmston, Leader of the T.L.C. polygamist group located in Manti, Utah is no stranger in court. The jury awarded two former members $300,000 on the grounds that Harmston and the church committed fraud, breach of contract and intentional infliction of emotional distress. The case is still under appeal. 

Owen A. Allred was accused of laundering $20,000.00 to John d’Anaconia Galt, alias John C. Putvin.

Upcoming book - Published with Agreka Books

The True Story of Manipulation by a few of Utah’s Most Notorious Polygamists: Tom Green, Owen A. Allred, James D. Harmston and John C. Putvin.

By John R. Llewellyn

While a sergeant in the detective division of the Salt Lake County Sheriff’s Office, I was in charge of sex crime investigations. Polygamy was classified as a sex crime. Suddenly, we started receiving numerous complaints involving dissident Mormons practicing polygamy. In order to better understand the problem, I researched Mormonism, reading one fascinating book after another, especially books that tried to explain the purpose of polygamy. As a result, I became converted to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I continued studying and four years after my conversion, I became a Mormon fundamentalist. When I retired as a lieutenant in 1982, I had one legal wife and two plural wives.

The Mormon Svengali is not about how I got into Mormon polygamy, but how I got out, and why I got out. I will show with clear and convincing evidence that the Mormon fundamentalist subculture is a breeding grounds and refuge for murderers, kidnapers, thieves and sexual predators masquerading as religious icons. The kidnapping of Elizabeth Smart is just the latest in a long list of bizarre criminal conduct.

In The Mormon Svengali, I will demonstrate that corruption and deception is endemic to Mormon polygamy, both past and present, because fundamental Mormonism is not so much about religion as it is about power, sex, wealth and manipulation. The problem is so prodigious, yet subtle, that its hard to decide where to start, because contemporary Mormon fundamentalism cannot be adequately scrutinized without reaching back into the early years of Mormonism. Ever since the Nauvoo days, the true blue, right or wrong Mormons, have functioned under a unique set of contorted religious laws - laws they hold higher than the United States Constitution - laws fundamentalists believe are inviolable, making them unaccountable, except to their fictional god.

In essence, The Mormon Svengali is a thesis asserting that serious problems exist in the Mormon fundamentalist subculture - problems so severe that they constitute an undeniable threat to the peace and dignity of society. These indigenous problems emanate from doctrines espoused by Mormon fundamentalists and are often manifest in criminal conduct. As proof for my treatise I will extract from the criminal prosecution of Tom Green and two ground-breaking law suits: Hancock vs. James D. Harmston and The True & Living Church, et. al. – and, Hill vs. Owen A. Allred and Apostolic United Brethren, et. al. I testified both for and against Tom Green. I was the lead investigator in the law suits against Harmston and Allred. Therefore, my knowledge of these matters is first hand and goes way beyond mere observation and conjecture.

The title, Svengali, comes from the mouth of John C. Putvin, a defendant, per se, in the Hill vs. Allred law suit. Putvin is an extraordinarily bright individual, reputed for his ability to manipulate and deceive. During the nine day trial, on two occasions, he sarcastically referred to himself as the "evil Svengali." Putvin thought he was being funny, but it was actually a Freudian slip. Of all the Svengali-type manipulators in the Mormon fundamentalist subculture, and there are many, John C. Putvin fits the mold best.

I use the term Svengali as a characterization. The actual Svengali was a fictitious, maleficent hypnotist in the novel, Trilby, by George DuMaurier, published in 1894. During that time period, the name Svengali became associated with anyone who "exerts a malign influence over another." The Merriam Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, Tenth Edition, defines Svengali as: "one who attempts usu. [sic] with evil intentions to persuade or force another to do his bidding."

The physical persona of Svengali is often depicted on stage as being dark complected with long, dark hair, mustache and beard, bold dark eyes, and having a sinister demeanor. Amazingly, that physical description also fits John C. Putvin, as well as Brian David Mitchell.

Svengali is therefore a uniquely appropriate characterization that I have chosen to label men in the Mormon fundamentalist subculture who by their ecclesiastic positions or charismatic powers, despicably manipulate others for personal gain.

It is my contention that the half-hearted handling of Utah’s polygamists by politicians and law enforcement has contributed to the aberrant behavior of zealot Mormons. For more than fifty years Mormon fundamentalism has been allowed to thrive and prosper unimpeded until it has become a valid subculture, splintering into several sects. Like pornography and marijuana that made its controversial debut in the sixties and seventies, Mormon polygamists, taking advantage of the liberal climate, also became more bold, shocking and public. In the seventies, Apostolic United Brethren, the second largest polygamist group, flaunted its lifestyle in Penthouse Magazine.

As the nation’s sexual mores became more liberal, Utah polygamists became more affable, portraying themselves as misunderstood Christians - harmless eccentrics like the Mennonites or Amish, keeping alive inalienable Mormon doctrines. Ultimately, individuals with starved, Svengali egos broke away from the obscure, stereotyped groups and promoted their own, refashioned brand of Mormonism.

Alex Joseph, a maverick from A.U.B., [Apostolic United Brethren] was the first to flirt with the limelight. He founded the town of Big Water, Arizona, near Glen Canyon Dam. Alex, now deceased, seduced and converted a bevy of young, attractive wives, one as young as fourteen, with the permission of her father. The vainglorious Alex became so impressed with his self-importance that he made a movie, playing himself as an influential civil rights activist and the quintessential, Mormon Don Juan. The movie was a gigantic, box office flop.

The mutual infatuation between polygamists and the media extended on into the nineties. Jim Harmston attempted to use the media as a proselyting tool. Tom Green, the polygamist who literally talked his way into prison, was the last of the great Mormon polygamist actors. Tom was to the media like a mesmerized moth, in spite of being scorched over and over again, he couldn’t stay away from the flame.

While Alex Joseph, Jim Harmston and Tom Green prostituted themselves before the media, four more incorporated, polygamist communities sprouted on the western horizon - two in Utah, one in Arizona and one in Montana. These incorporated towns have become miniature, modern versions of Brigham Young’s, State of Deseret - sovereign theocracies masquerading as constitutional democracies. In other words, the true power in these communities are priesthood versions of Mormon theocracy.

In the last twenty years, the most sensational stories to come out of Utah have been about Mormon polygamists - men like mass murderer, Ervil LeBaron - Adam Swapp and his brothers who shot it out with the FBI - Dan and Ron Lafferty who cut the throats of a mother and infant daughter - Paul Kingston, high priest of the incestuous Kingston Clan - James D Harmston, the most innovative and ruthless of the living, phony prophets - child rapist and "media whore," Tom Green - Owen A. Allred, the "presiding elder" of the "Allred family," of the "Mormon mafia" - and now Brian David Mitchell, the man who kidnapped and enslaved Elizabeth Smart.

I am convinced that the blatant arrogance of the above men has been fostered by esoteric fundamentalist doctrines. These enigmatic doctrines, in the hands of wicked or deranged men, further twist vulnerable minds resulting in criminal behavior. One such doctrine is plural marriage which alleges that polygamy is a commandment. Men like Tom Green and Brain Mitchell take the doctrine to the extreme, obtaining wives by hook or crook as if it must be lived at any cost, even if doing so transcends common decency. Therefore, The Mormon Svengali is not just an expose’ about unscrupulous men, but an iconoclastic indictment against specific, Mormon fundamentalist doctrines.

Non-Mormons, especially those living outside of Utah, may be shocked to learn that political and cultural tolerance has also contributed to the criminal conduct of lawless, contemporary polygamists. My contention is easily corroborated by the following examples:

To begin with, I know from my experience as a deputy sheriff that polygamist complaints are a "pain in the neck" to law enforcement. Over ninety-five percent of the complaints are based on suspicion or hearsay. The other five percent take as much time and manpower to investigate and prosecute as a major crime. If you think about it, its hard for sheriffs and police chiefs to dedicate assets to a third degree felony [bigamy] when law enforcement is overwhelmed with murders, robberies, burglaries, rapes, drug and gang related crimes.

Furthermore, in essence, polygamy, or bigamy, between consenting adults is a victimless crime. Bigamy is a crime because the legislature made it a crime. Therefore, in 99% of the cases, [there has only been one brought to trial in the last 50 years, and that was Tom Green] the state is the complainant and there are no witnesses. Consequently, it requires many hours of surveillance to build a case.

When sheriffs are asked why they don’t enforce the bigamy laws the most popular reply is, "We don’t have the time or manpower to peek into bedroom windows," which pretty much sums up the situation.

In terms of priority, bigamy ranks near the bottom of the scale along side sodomy. Even though laws like sodomy and adultery are still on the books they are seldom enforced, and never enforced between consenting adults. As a show of good faith, leading polygamists and town cops buddy-up to legitimate law enforcement officers hoping to mitigate hostility. In a nut shell, polygamists know law enforcement doesn’t have the time or inclination to chase after them.

As our society has become more liberal, it seems people have become more outraged over "discriminating" against homosexuals than they are offended by the sex acts performed by homosexuals, like anal intercourse, buggery, and fellatio. If we are not going to enforce crimes incidental to homosexuality, why bother with bigamy between consenting adults?

The issues around homosexuality are not only emotional but highly political. In an April 23, 2003, Salt Lake Tribune article by Judy Holland, of The New York Times, it states that, "A political firestorm raged Tuesday around Sen. Rick Santorum, R-Pa., as Democrats excoriated him for his comments equating homosexuality with bigamy, polygamy, incest and adultery." Senator Santorum was quoted as saying, "If the Supreme Court says you have the right to consensual [gay] sex within your home, then you have the right to bigamy, you have the right to polygamy, you have the right to incest, you have the right to adultery. You have the right to anything."

The brave Senator, speaking from a political forum, not a moral forum, has a valid point. As a deputy sheriff I arrested homosexuals for publicly soliciting sex, sexually abusing little boys, and defacing public restroom walls with disgusting offers of homosexual sex. I find it extremely amusing that pro-homosexual activists should be offended by an equitable, political comparison with polygamy. Do these people really think polygamy is outrageous and homosexuality is not outrageous?

Consensual polygamists often marry within the fifth consanguinity, which is incest. It is well known that men marry half-sisters, nieces and cousins. A polygamist first wife, often the legal wife, gives her husband consent to marry other women - that’s consensual bigamy - its also adultery. By the very nature of their sacrosanct habits, polygamists routinely commit bigamy and adultery.

The Salt Lake Tribune, April 24, 2003, sought out Owen A. Allred and received a remark about Senator Santorum’s controversial statement. Allred, who is the leader of the second largest [not the largest] polygamist group, said: "He [Santorum] is absolutely right. The people of the United States are doing whatever they can to do away with the sacred rights of marriage." Allred went on to say, "...Santorum’s inclusion of polygamy in his list tarnishes a religious tradition whose roots are traced to biblical figures such as Abraham, Jacob and Moses – defiling them as ‘immoral and dirty.’"

Allred, who has been exposed by clear and convincing evidence to be a thief, like all polygamist leaders, attempts to hide behind the skirts of Abraham, Jacob and Moses. Although Abraham’s treatment of his plural wife, Hagar, is far from honorable, I know of no one calling those biblical patriarchs "immoral or dirty." If polygamy has been labeled, "immoral or dirty," unscrupulous, Mormon polygamist leaders like Allred, Harmston, Warren Jeffs, and Paul Kingston are to blame.

With the exception of incest and covert bigamy, in other words, marrying a second women without the knowledge of the first, what’s the big deal? How many men have extramarital affairs? In the privacy of the bedroom, why shouldn’t consensual adult polygamists have the same political rights as consensual adult homosexuals? To put it satirically, we ought to pass a law prohibiting minors from drinking beer, being gay or a polygamist until they turn 21.

There is always a citizen that will argue that it is the policeman’s duty to enforce a law irrespective of its popularity or whether or not he, himself, is offended. However, in the real world where cops are "blessed" with discretionary powers, the prudent cop will enforce those crimes first that in general, offend society the most, like murder. Political forums advocating decriminalizing homosexuality and/or polygamy, in most cases, are nothing more than attempts to force upon society a change in morality.

It can also be argued that children are victims of polygamist relationships. I agree, children are often victims. I have already demonstrated that fact in my two novels, Murder of a Prophet and A Teenager’s Tears.

Polygamist children are more apt to be sexually molested than monogamist children. In some groups, like the Kingston Clan, children are not told who their father is, and many children are born into extreme obscurity and poverty. Some children are raised with very little or no paternal nurturing. They are treated as chattel, like their "brood mare" mothers, sired in fulfillment of a religious commandment. However, the issues involving the rights of children and parental rights can get very sticky. According to the Edmunds-Tucker Act, it is unlawful to practice polygamy but it is not unlawful to teach your children that plural marriage is the most sacred of God’s commandments, and the only conduit to the celestial kingdom.

Polygamy is further tolerated in Utah because of what I call, "subliminal envy."

The most common axiomatic statement made by monogamist males about polygamy is, "I can’t take care of one wife, let alone two or more." Without exaggerating, I have heard that remark at least a hundred times. But the quip is always said with a twinkle and a smile, which tells me, behind that clever little remark is the thought: "But I wouldn’t mind knowing what its like!"

A few years ago when the Utah legislature was contemplating an amendment that would increase the penalty of bigamy from a third to second degree felony, one representative was quoted as saying, and I paraphrase, "If we pass this amendment, we will be doing our ‘young studs’ a disservice. Boys will be boys. They are just doing what they have been programmed to do." In other words, we don’t want to legislate our promiscuous young men into being criminals. As hypocritical as that my sound, I agree, because by today’s standards, young girls can be as sexually aggressive as boys.

Tom Green thought other men looked at him as he viewed himself, a flamboyant woman’s man on the same scale as Bert Reynolds. Tom actually thought he was envied, maybe by other pedophiles, but not by mature, adult men.

It has been my observation that most men are polygamist by nature, if not by deed, then by fantasy. The word polygamy invokes in the minds of most monogamist men, even pious Mormon men, erotic images. To claim otherwise would be dishonest. How do I know? From their remarks. Think about it, then you men test yourself. Try to imagine yourself with three or more young, attractive wives in a strictly religious context, completely devoid of sex. If you’re a healthy, normal, heterosexual man, its impossible to define or evaluate plural marriage without a libidinal equation.

Mormonism tells us that the purpose of polygamy is to "raise up a righteous seed," and to qualify adherents for resurrection in the highest degree of the "celestial kingdom." In the "celestial kingdom," the polygamists will procreate spirit children. These spirit children will eventually inhabit new worlds like earth. Each plural wife will sit in the office of "Eve" of her own world. The husband will be the Adam, or god, of that world. In fact, the man will be the god of many worlds, one for each wife.

Only men and women in the highest degree of the celestial kingdom will be able to procreate. All the rest will be eunuchs and servants to the polygamists, even great men like Thomas Paine, Abraham Lincoln and Winston Churchill. Imagine, if you will, President Zachary Taylor shining Brigham Young’s shoes, for that is how the Mormons visualized the celestial kingdom.

In 1886, when President John Taylor allegedly received a visitation from Jesus Christ and Joseph Smith, instructing him to set apart men to secretly perpetuate the practice of plural marriage, Taylor urged the men in that cabal to not let a year pass without a child being born in the "new and everlasting covenant."

In spite of all the fancy words and highfalutin rhetoric in the Mormon lexicon used to elucidate the practice of plural marriage, otherwise known as "celestial marriage," "the new and everlasting covenant," "spiritual wifery," "Patriarchal order of Marriage," or polygyny, there is not one syllable alluding to the pleasure or self-esteem a man receives from having intercourse with many women, albeit, plural wives. The use of words like "patriarchal," "celestial" and "marriage" distract from the sexual aspect of plural marriage and suggests that copulation under the "new and everlasting covenant" is a sacrosanct ritual. Sacrosanct sex serves another purpose. If Mormon polygamists are merely carrying out a commandment of God, it tends to ease guilt feelings like unfaithfulness and adultery, rightly imposed by society.

There has never been a religion strong enough to purge from man that primordial, physiological drive that insures the perpetuation of our race. The dozens, if not hundreds, of Catholic priests accused of molesting children is a case in point. And what about the prominent congressmen and television evangelists caught soliciting sex from undercover, decoy hookers? Valuable careers and reputations have been lost because of a moment of weakness in giving in to that biological urge that often overrides common sense, or the conscience.

I believe Joseph Smith recognized the biological dominance of the sex urge. Instead of fighting it, he exploited it, by redefining it with religious cosmetics, hoping it would be accepted. Lets face it, Mormon polygamy is a great, somewhat acceptable way to unbridle an aggressive, imaginative libido.

Religious and political disconcertment is probably the primary reason polygamy is tolerated in Utah. On the surface, in Utah, there is separation of church and state, but in Utah, politicians and religious leaders often travel the same road. Very often, the religious leader wears two hats, politician by day and church leader by night, especially in small communities. Therefore, unwanted publicity about Utah polygamists may be as disconcerting to a mayor or governor as it is to a bishop or apostle. To avoid discomposure there exists an unwritten policy best explained by that old familiar adage, "Let sleeping dogs lie."

Why is polygamy disconcerting? Because it is like opening Pandora's box. It is a sore reminder that in the Nineteenth Century, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints not only openly practiced plural marriage but made the practice a condition of exaltation. From all indications, it is a subject the LDS Church would rather not talk about, and many Church officials refuse to talk about.

Ironically, the LDS Church does more to combat polygamy than law enforcement, but they do it quietly within their own judicious circle. Church members suspected of being fundamentalists or polygamists are called before a Church court and unless they can give a satisfactory explanation for their nonconformity, or they unconditionally repent on the spot, they are excommunicated.

After I retired from the Sheriff’s Office, I was called to appear before a Church, high priest court. I chose not to appear and in my absence was excommunicated for "un-Christian-like conduct."

I understood what the Church was doing, and why they had to do it. It was not a traumatic experience for me and I harbor no adverse feelings. But I did find the Church court’s conclusion, "un-Christian-like conduct," both humorous and incongruous, and supposed, it was the best they could come up with under the circumstances.

At the time I had three wives, and there is no doubt in my mind that is why they were holding court. But without a confession on my part, all they had was suspicion. I was to learn later that "un-Christian-like conduct" is a kind of catch-all way of culling out undesirable members.

The irony of "un-Christian-like conduct" is that when Joseph Smith and Brigham Young had plural wives, polygamy was very Christian, but in my case it was not. "Authority" is what makes the difference. Joseph and Brigham had authority to take plural wives and they passed that authority on to subordinates like Parley P. Pratt, who was murdered by the estranged husband of one of his plural wives.

If you have proper authority, then what ever you do is Christian, even the taking of another man’s money, or wife. In the case of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, celestial marriage, or polygamy, is still a correct principle, however, the authority to practice polygamy has been suspended. The reason why the LDS Church withdrew the authority is a matter of debate. There are Church members who say the suspension was the will of God. Others say polygamy was suspended so Utah could become a state. But history suggests something else.

At the time of the infamous 1890 Manifesto, which is the official Church document that suspended plural marriage, the United States Government had the LDS Church in a strangle-hold. The leading men were either in jail or in hiding. The Church was on the verge of disenfranchisement and bankruptcy. By the 1870s the "writing was already on the wall." The LDS Church showed no signs that it would change its defiant course. Consequently, anti-polygamy writer J. H. Beadle and Mormon apostate, and intellectual, Thomas Stenhouse, and many others, were all predicting the eventual demise of the Mormon Church.

But the diehard believers were convinced God would come and rescue the Church by destroying the wicked. They re-enforce this thinking by relating one to another, vivid prophetic dreams of blood and gore, and gentile mothers feeding on the flesh of their children.

The beloved apostle and future president, the gentle Wilford Woodruff, in 1881, compiled a list of Church enemies, laid it upon the alter, and lead the apostles in the "prayer of damnation" that would guarantee the coming of Christ and the pending destruction of the wicked.

But in spite of all the millennial prayers and beseeching, calling upon God to hurray His second coming and fight their battles, it became obvious to Wilford Woodruff that if the Church were to survive, polygamy had to go. God didn’t come as Joseph Smith had predicted. There would be no going back to Jackson County to build the New Jerusalem. The great city of New York had not been destroyed as Wilford had envisioned. The United States Government did not crumble and Brigham Young did not take over a world government. Fortunately, Wilford Woodruff was able to shake loose of his apocalyptic visions and had enough presence of mind to appease church enemies. The 1890 Manifesto literally saved the LDS Church.

Yet, contemporary Mormon fundamentalists believe that if Wilford had just held on a little longer, the Lord would have come. Therefore, the fundamentalists still cling to those wonderful visions of fire and brimstone, of being lifted up and watching one great city after another destroyed by fire and raging waters. They still give their sons patriarchal blessings and tell them in a mighty voice, that they will live to see the Son of Man return and witness the great destructions, when their enemies shall be consumed by fire.

On three occasions, surrogate prophet of the Fundamentalist Church, Warren Jeffs, instructed the faithful in Colorado City, Arizona and Hildale, Utah to prepare to be "lifted up." But each time the "translation" was postponed because the people weren’t ready. Like their Nineteenth Century predecessors, vain waiting has become a habit, a tradition. But not for the people of Apostolic United Brethren, their leader, Owen A. Allred, sees no virtue in waiting. He says the second coming is at least 25 years away and vainly concentrates his energy on whitewashing his legacy, and building up the kingdom of god, which means, making money.

In the minds of many Mormons, they lost polygamy due to strong-arm tactics. But many gentiles [non-Mormons] snicker and say that the great, Mormon god acquiesced to the United States Government and reversed himself. But good, imaginative Mormons have always been able to rationalize and adjust when revelations go unfulfilled or are contradicted. They imply that plural marriage was instituted to provide homes and families for widows and surplus women. However, censuses held between 1852 when plural marriage was openly touted as a doctrine and 1890 when it was suspended, showed there were actually more women than men in Utah. Still there was a shortage of women because the leading brethren snatched up all the young women as plural wives so there wasn’t enough to go around. The same situation exists today in the Kingston Clan.

It is estimated that at least a third of the population of Utah are second or third generation offspring of polygamist ancestors. Some of Utah’s leading citizens, Governor Mike Leavitt and Senator Orrin Hatch, have ancestors that were Mormon polygamists.

On Thursday, April 17, 2003, during a public meeting in St. George, Utah, Senator Orrin Hatch was asked about his stance towards polygamy by Bob Curran, director of an anti-polygamy group called, Help the Child Brides. Senator Hatch was quoted by the Deseret News, an LDS Church owned newspaper, as saying: "I wouldn’t throw accusations around unless you know they’re true. I’m not here to justify polygamy. All I can say is, I know people in Hildale who are polygamists who are very fine people. You come and show me evidence of children being abused there and I’ll get involved. Bring the evidence to me."

Ironically, on April 11, 2003, Phoenix New Times journalist, John Dougherty, did just that, produced the evidence in a well written, multiple-page story exposing sexual exploitation and other criminal conduct in the twin cities of Colorado City, Arizona and Hildale, Utah.

On July 24, 1998, The Salt Lake Tribune, reported that during his monthly news conference at KUED studios, Governor Mike Leavitt stated "that plural marriage may be an expression of religion that is protected under the U.S. Constitution’s First Amendment." The Governor suggested that the reason polygamy had "not been rooted out" of Utah is because it might infringe on "freedom of religious expression."

The Governor’s candid remarks were welcomed by outspoken polygamists but ignited the wrath of the ladies of Tapestry Against Polygamy, who had the law on their side, although un-enforced. The following Friday, after becoming the butt of jokes by television comic, Jay Leno, the Governor clarified his remarks by saying: "Polygamy is prohibited by the Utah Constitution. It is against the law and it should be."

I suspect that when the Governor said that enforcing laws prohibiting polygamy might be an infringement of religious freedom, he was speaking as Mike Leavitt, the person, and probably echoed the sentiment of a majority of Utahans. But when he said, "It is against the law and it should be," he was speaking as the Governor of the State of Utah.

Senator Hatch said, "I personally don’t believe in polygamy. But I’m not going to judge others who feel differently." But was that the politically corrected statement to make? It sounded very much like, I’m not gay, but I don’t have a problem with people who are gay. I personally think politically correct statements are manufactured in the mind and don’t represent the heart.

In the April 19, 2003, Opinion section of The Salt Lake Tribune, an unsigned, editorial opinion entitled, "Polygamy Sensitive, "stated: "No longer can elected leaders and law enforcement officers – including county attorneys such as Ludlow – give the peculiar practice [polygamy] a wink and a nod, as they once did, and still claim to be doing their job." [Washington County Attorney Eric Ludlow was being scrutinized by a legislative committee before being approved as a 5^th District Court Judge. At a hearing, Ludlow had been accused by Troy Bowles of being soft on polygamy.]

So why should it be surprising that there is a degree of reminiscent reverence, in other words, a heartfelt soft spot, a primordial yearning, and secret admiration for those still bold enough to take plural wives.

LDS Church authorities wisely avoid any forum having to do with Mormon fundamentalism, especially polygamy. I suspect the avoidance is because some Nineteenth Century Mormon zealots were as crazy and unpredictable as our contemporary polygamists. When it comes to history, the LDS Church seems only willing to talk about those things and events that are faith promoting, [or enhances the image of the Church].

To give the reader an idea of the Church position towards controversial history, the following is a quote from Apostle Boyd K. Packer:

"I have a hard time with historians ... because they idolize the truth. The truth is not uplifting; it destroys. Historians should tell only that part of the truth that is inspiring and uplifting."

There has been many excellent scholarly biographies published about historic, Mormon luminaries, like John D. Lee, William S. Godbe and Sidney Rigdon, that are no doubt disconcerting to LDS Church leaders. One book in particular, In Sacred Loneliness, by Todd Compton, about Joseph Smith’s many plural wives, is extremely disturbing, even for a person with liberal morals. If these literary works were widely read they might have a faith eroding effect upon Church growth. The Church position towards such books is to stay away from them, and most good Latter-day Saints yield to that precept.

Although the Mormon fundamentalist subculture is a haven for Svengali-like characters, the focus of this expose is on James D. Harmston, Tom Green, Owen A. Allred and John C. Putvin. Of the four men, John C. Putvin is the most brilliant, the most diabolical, and the closest incarnation of the mythical master manipulator, Svengali.

Each of these men are representative of the Mormon fundamentalist subculture. Each man is well read, articulate, charismatic and driven by an underlying obsession. John C. Putvin, the only one who is not the leader of a group, is driven by a compulsion to control and manipulate, he is highly motivated by hate and the urge to get even, he enjoys taking risks, and of course, he has what appears to be, an insatiable love of money.

Tom Green, the second most intelligent, could have become a successful prophet with a modest following had it not been for his fixation on sex and little girls, and withal, an infatuation with the media. Tom was a paralegal and had a good understanding of the law. However, like Putvin, he was a risk-taker and couldn’t resist testing his legal skills against seasoned prosecuting attorneys.

James D. Harmston ranks behind Green in intelligence. His fixation is on power, and money to keep him in power. He has accumulated a large harem of mostly older wives that belies his sexual impudence. Jim’s laurels are conveyed by false images. His delights are not so much erotic as he would have you believe, but in manipulating those under his control.

Owen A. Allred is not particularly smart, or nearly as creative as the others. He inherited both his power and congregation from his murdered brother, Rulon C. Allred. To maintain his standing, Owen only had to keep alive the deception and portray a convincing image of a prophet and leader, which he does quite well. Owen’s passion is money and a favorable legacy. As a leader he was easily manipulated by his apostolic councilmen, but when it came to money he was as tight as a snapping turtle’s jaw, that is, until he went into the stealing business with John C. Putvin, who in the end, out bamboozled Brother Owen, and under estimated the competence of myself.

In 1994 I went from disgruntled polygamist to a polygamy muckraker. I became the lead investigator in the two law suits against Harmston and Allred. Tom Green was the paralegal in both law suits. As a result, Tom and I became friends, but that changed dramatically during Tom’s prosecution of child rape. I was asked to co-author the prosecution side of Tom’s biography. By this time Tom was in prison serving 0 to 5 years for bigamy.

I arranged to visit Tom in the Utah State Prison. I told Tom that if I did the prosecution side of the story, I could not do a whitewash because of our friendship. I had to do the prosecution side of the story, no holds barred, no matter how it turned out. Tom said okay.

I contacted prosecution investigator, Ron Barton, who gave me a list of the prosecution witnesses. Two days after I started interviewing the witnesses, Tom’s people began a character assassination over the Internet, accusing me of being a spy and in the employ of Juab County Prosecutor, David Leavitt. Over night I became Tom’s enemy and remain so to this day.

Interviewing prosecution witnesses substantiated a side of Tom Green that I suspected, but did not explore until I was asked to co-author his biography. After Tom’s people maligned my character, I harbored no misgivings about testifying against Tom. Our relationship was further exasperated when I discovered that because of Tom’s gargantuan ego and shameful greed, he had injured our civil case against Owen Allred. It took me a month to repair the damage, and even then, some damage was beyond repair. To put it mildly, Tom Green was not the virtuous husband and religious icon he portrayed on television and during his defense.

Muckraking and writing about Mormon polygamy has been an exciting and rewarding adventure. I couldn’t have done it without the experience I gained from my polygamist past. That advanced knowledge was instrumental in helping me and my co-investigator, Rod Willimas, expose the nefarious cabals of Utah’s most notorious polygamists.

When I learned of Owen A. Allred’s suspected participation in the theft of 1.54 million dollars from Virginia Hill, to keep peace in my family, I could have conveniently had a memory loss, but I didn’t. I turned against my dishonest priesthood leader, Owen A. Allred, and became the lead investigator for Virginia in a law suit to recover her stolen money. Ironically, Virginia Hill was the ex-wife of a real life, Detroit mafia guy. The stolen money was earmarked to purchase the Desert Inn Ranch, the Las Vegas mob’s recreational ranch. Without a doubt, the Hill vs. Allred law suit has been the most intriguing and rewarding investigation of a thirty year career.

In summery, The Mormon Svengali is a chronicle about polygamy, sexual exploitation, money and abuse of religious power. Its about Mormon fundamentalist cults with the morals and mentality of the Taliban. Its about Mormons who are more Islamic than they are Christian. The Mormon Svengali is about brilliant, unscrupulously cunning men, adept in the art of manipulation and deception, who risk everything for their lust of power, sex and money.

Why do they risk everything? Because of belief in powerful, inflammable doctrines, subliminal envy, sacrosanct sex, cultural and political discomposure, the expectant, millennial coming of Jesus Christ, prophetic reliance of the eventual destruction of their enemies, and lastly, a covert sense of superiority - that one day they will be kings and priests and rulers of men, all of which, tends to create in the minds of gullible fundamentalists, the illusion of invulnerability.

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The first Polygamist tried in Utah in over 50 years. 
Thomas A. Green was imprisoned for Bigamy, Welfare fraud and criminal non-support for his 29 children.

"Polygamous leader Owen Allred laundered thousands of dollars in cash, and his church – the Apostolic United Brethren (AUB) – conspired to steal thousands more, a judge has ruled in a multimillion-dollar lawsuit."

"Polygamists Lose in Court." By Kevin Cantera reported in 
Salt Lake Tribune on
March 6, 2003