Polygamous Sect Leader Faces Extended Prison Term for Child Abuse
Samuel Bateman, identified as a leader within a polygamous sect, was handed an additional 24-year sentence in conjunction with the 50-year sentence he is already serving in federal prison. This decision follows a disturbing traffic stop that led to his arrest.
In 2022, during a routine traffic stop in Flagstaff, police officers uncovered three young girls, aged 11 to 14, confined in a trailer without seatbelts or proper ventilation. The discovery was made after a bystander noticed small fingers poking through a gap in the trailer’s structure, prompting immediate police intervention.
In June, a jury deliberated for only 40 minutes before convicting Bateman of child abuse charges. Bateman has been known as the self-proclaimed prophet of a faction within the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, located on the Arizona Strip.
Coconino County Attorney Ammon Barker commented post-sentencing, emphasizing the importance of protecting children. “Today’s sentence is about accountability for the harm done to these young victims,” Barker stated. “Protecting children from abuse is some of the most important work we do, and we will continue to do everything we can to hold accountable those who prey on the most vulnerable.”
In 2024, Bateman was previously sentenced to 50 years in federal prison for coercing minors, some as young as 9, into performing sexual acts, as well as for conspiring to kidnap children. His sect, which practices polygamy, is based in Short Creek, a community straddling the Arizona-Utah border. Although polygamy was part of the early teachings of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, it was officially renounced in 1890 and is now strictly forbidden within the church.
Bateman claimed to have had up to 20 wives, with at least 10 being minors under the age of 18. Previously, he was a key associate of Warren Jeffs, the former sect leader serving a life sentence for child sexual assault.
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