Lynn Packer examines the relationship between the LDS Church and Operation Underground Railroad

An apostle of the Mormon Church could get drawn into a Utah criminal investigation conducted by Davis County attorney Troy Rawlings. Russell Ballard, president of the LDS Church’s Quorum of the 12 Apostles, has both spiritual and alleged financial ties to the Utah nonprofit Operation Underground Railroad. The criminal probe is likely centered on Tim Ballard, the charity’s fame-obsessed founder. Russell Ballard shares with Tim Ballard—they are not related—a belief in the so-called covenant. The covenant is a religious hypothesis that’s embedded in the DNA of the organization established to rescue child sex slaves from kidnappers and pedophiles.

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Editor’s Note: Lynn Packer is an award-winning investigative reporter, legal consultant and author of “Lying for the Lord: The Paul H. Dunn Stories“. Lynn graduated from Utah State University with a degree in broadcast journalism. He served in the United States Army from ’68 through ’70 in Vietnam, as a television news anchor and producer for the Armed Forces Vietnam Network (AFVN) Quang Tri detachment. He was awarded the Bronze Star. For 15 years Mr. Packer reported for KSL Television News in Salt Lake City. For ten years Lynn was an adjunct professor teaching journalism at Brigham Young University and the University of Dortmund.

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Resources & Further Reading

Organizations Under Scrutiny – American Crime Journal |

Operation Underground Railroad’s Roots – American Crime Journal |

O.U.R.’s Origin Myth – American Crime Journal |

Rambo Reyes & O.U.R.: The Colombian Rescue Mission – American Crime Journal |

Operation Underground Railroad and Religious Extremism – American Crime Journal |

Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes and Operation Underground Railroad – American Crime Journal |

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