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SAN ANGELO, Texas (AP) -- A fourth member of a polygamist group whose West Texas ranch was raided in 2008 has been sentenced to 75 years in prison.
Merril Leroy Jessop was sentenced Friday by a San Angelo jury after being convicted earlier this week of sexual assault of a child. The victim was a 15-year-old girl who prosecutors say was Jessop's underage bride.
The 35-year-old Jessop was the fourth member of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints to be tried for sexual assault of a child since Texas authorities raided the group's ranch near Eldorado two years ago.
The Texas Attorney General's Office says eight more suspects from the YFZ ranch are awaiting trial.
(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
