In each case, the members were attempting to stockpile weapons in preparation for an anticipated nuclear holocaust. One of those arrested was Edward Francis, the husband of sect leader Elizabeth Clare Prophet. He was apparently planning to ship them to the sect's 33,000-acre encampment in Park County, Montana. His weapons and money were confiscated. Later, on October 13, CUT staff member Frank Black was arrested transporting two more Barrett semiautomatic weapons to Montana.
Authorities say the purchase was illegal because Black had given a false address.
Charges were later dropped against him, but his weapons were confiscated. But in mid-November, the church succumbed to media pressure and gave reporters a tour of one of the underground shelters. According to Mrs. Prophet's doomsday scenario, the U.S. will be victimized by an all-out Soviet nuclear attack, followed by an invasion. When that date came and went, Mrs. Prophet said the prayers of sect members had postponed the event, and December 31 was the new date. Lewis has begun to publicly denounce her mother as a cult leader and has charged CUT with being a potentially dangerous organization that exercises mind control.