SALT LAKE CITY—The leader of a small polygamous group on the Arizona-Utah border helped orchestrate the escape of eight girls he considered his wives from a group home where they were placed after authorities learned of what was happening, prosecutors allege in a Wednesday court filing. An indictment filed by U.S. attorneys in Arizona outlines…

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz.—The leader of a small polygamous group on the Arizona-Utah border had taken at least 20 wives, most of them minors, and punished followers who did not treat him as a prophet, newly filed federal court documents show. The filing provides insight into what investigators have found in a case that first became public…

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz.—A leader of a small polygamous group on the Arizona-Utah line pleaded not guilty Thursday to federal charges of tampering with evidence, weeks after being stopped on a highway with young girls in an enclosed trailer. Samuel Bateman, 46, was indicted earlier this month on three counts of destroying or attempting to destroy records,…