Self-Proclaimed ‘Prophet’ In Custody In Case Of Missing Coltharp Girls Found In Utah

It had been almost three months since Micha Soble last saw her kids, two boys and two girls. The Coltharp girls, along with their two brothers, went missing on September 14 with their father, John Coltharp, and their grandparents. Micha’s wait is over now after all her kids were found safe earlier today, as reported by CBS News — but the situation was far from simple.

John was found and arrested last Friday, but he refused to give any indication of where his family was at the time. Earlier today, Iron County sheriff’s deputies raided a compound where a group that John associates with lives. At the compound, they were able to find 7-year-old William Coltharp, 6-year-old Seth Coltharp, and the grandparents; the Coltharp girls, 4-year-old Hattie and 8-year-old Dinah, were nowhere to be found.

“They raided the complex, or compound, recovered the two boys, the two grandparents, but the girls had been taken in the night,” said Spring City Police Chief Clarke Christensen Monday afternoon.

An Amber Alert was issued as soon as the Coltharp girls were found to be missing. A few hours later, the sisters were found alone in Southwestern Utah. Both kids were taken to a local hospital with no obvious signs of injuries, but extremely cold.

“Had we not located them tonight, most likely they would not have made it through the night,” said Iron County Sheriff’s Lt. Del Schlosser to the press.

https://www.facebook.com/micha.coltharp.90/posts/853282244850074?pnref=story

In connection with the girls’ disappearance, police arrested 34-year-old Samuel Warren Shaffer. The suspect was walking alone near the location where the sisters were found. He was seen earlier in the day with both girls and his daughters. He was also named in the Amber Alert as a person of interest in the disappearance of the Coltharp girls.

Shaffer, a friend of John Coltharp, calls himself “The Seer” and considers himself a “prophet.” Shaffer and John were part of a religious sect called “Knights of the Crystal Blade,” of which Shaffer was the prophet. According to Fox News, Micha gave a full statement about Shaffer.

“His name is Samuel Warren Shaffer and he believes he holds the keys of this dispensation and he has been many people throughout the history of time and that he has been reincarnated. They are following his prophecies and I believe he is with them and helping hide the children.”

After John and the kids went missing mid-September, Micha filed for divorce on September 29, requesting also a temporary restraining order against her estranged husband for fear that her kids would suffer irreparable harm if they were to stay with their father.

According to Micha, John and she were members of the LDS Church, but he was excommunicated for his extreme beliefs.

“[He was] a doomsday prepper who believes that the world will soon come to an end.”