Photo credit: Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. (2024, December 2). In Wikipedia.
Samuel Bateman, a polygamous religious leader who claimed more than 20 spiritual “wives,” including girls as young as nine, faces up to 50 years in prison after pleading guilty to a years-long scheme involving child exploitation and kidnapping, and for forcing underage girls to submit to criminal sex acts with him and other adults, The Associated Press reported today via The Guardian.
Bateman’s sentencing, scheduled for Monday, may be delayed as a federal judge evaluates his mental competency, according to his attorney.
Bateman, 48, led a small offshoot of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (FLDS), a sect based in Colorado City, Arizona, and Hildale, Utah. The FLDS separated from mainstream Mormonism after the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints officially abandoned polygamy in 1890. Despite this, the FLDS has long been associated with the sexual abuse of underage girls under the guise of spiritual “marriages.”
In 2019 and 2020, Bateman proclaimed himself a prophet and began taking women and children from the families of his male followers, declaring them to be his “wives,” according to his plea agreement. Although these unions were neither legal nor ceremonial, Bateman acknowledged that each new “marriage” marked the start of illicit sexual activity.
Federal agents revealed that Bateman imposed severe punishments on his followers, ranging from public shaming to requiring male members to atone for their “sins” by surrendering their wives and daughters to him. He traveled extensively across Arizona, Utah, Colorado, and Nebraska, coercing women and children into his criminal sexual activities, with some of his sexual acts recorded and transmitted electronically.
In August 2022, state police arrested Bateman in Flagstaff, Arizona, after a bystander reported seeing small fingers reaching through the slats of a trailer door. Inside the unventilated trailer, officers found three girls, aged 11 to 14, living in squalid conditions. Although Bateman was released on bond, he was arrested again for obstructing a federal investigation into child trafficking. Authorities later took nine children from his Colorado City home into protective custody.
Eight of those children disappeared from foster care and were later found in Washington state, traveling in a vehicle driven by one of Bateman’s adult “wives.” Bateman admitted to orchestrating the kidnapping.
Federal prosecutors noted that Bateman’s plea agreement hinges on his co-defendants also pleading guilty. It includes restitution of up to $1 million per victim and the forfeiture of all assets.
Seven of Bateman’s adult “wives” have already been convicted for their roles in coercing children, impeding investigations, or aiding in the kidnappings. Another woman is scheduled for trial in January on related charges. Additionally, two Colorado City brothers, who financed Bateman’s lavish lifestyle by purchasing luxury vehicles for him, face sentencing in December.
Court records highlight the manipulation and coercion Bateman inflicted on his followers, many of whom were raised in environments normalizing abuse. One lawyer described a client as growing up in a cult that condoned child exploitation. Another recounted how a woman was treated as property and given to Bateman against her will.
Resources for Survivors
If you or someone you know is experiencing abuse, call or text the the Childhelp abuse hotline at 800-422-4453 to report child abuse or DM for help. For adult survivors of child abuse, help is available at ascasupport.org.
