Polygamous sect leader ordered to stop Minnesota building

Officials in northern Minnesota have ordered a temporary halt to construction on land linked to a man who led a secretive polygamous sect's compound in South Dakota.

Cook County officials issued the cease-and-desist order Friday to a company tied to Seth Jeffs. KARE-TV reports the order was issued after officials visited the 40-acre property west of Grand Marais and found apparent wetland violations.

Jeffs is the brother of Warren Jeffs, imprisoned leader of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Authorities have said Seth Jeffs led the sect's South Dakota Black Hills compound, a site that has raised concerns among nearby residents.

Seth Jeffs applied in August to build a 5,760-square-foot building on the Minnesota land. The permit was approved in December.

A man answering a phone number listed on Seth Jeff's application for the Minnesota land-use permit hung up on The Associated Press Wednesday.