Leader of polygamous group had at least 20 wives, most of them minors: FBI
The leader of a polygamist group near the Arizona-Utah border has at least 20 wives, many of them minors, federal court documents show.
Samuel Bateman is the founder of a Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints offshoot. The self-proclaimed prophet was financially supported by male members of his group who offered their own wives and daughters to be his wives, according to an FBI affidavit.
He also punished followers who didn’t treat him as a prophet, the document shows.
Bateman was arrested near Flagstaff. Ariz. in August after authorities found three young girls between the ages of 11 and 14 locked inside a cargo trailer attached to his vehicle. He was charged with three counts of child abuse.
He posted bond but was later arrested again and charged with three counts of destroying or attempting to destroy records and tampering with criminal proceedings during an investigation on whether Bateman was transporting minors across state lines for sexual activity.
After his arrest, authorities say Bateman told his followers to delete messages sent through the messaging app Signal, and also instructed them to obtain passports. He has also pleaded not guilty to those charges.
Court documents filed Friday show three of his wives were also charged with kidnapping and impeding a foreseeable prosecution: Naomi Bistline and Donnae Barlow are scheduled to appear in a Flagstaff court on Wednesday, while Moretta Rose Johnson is awaiting extradition to Washington.
Federal officials accuse the women of kidnapping and fleeing with eight of Bateman’s children. The underage girls, who had been rescued by Arizona child welfare officials, were found in Spokane, Wash. on Thursday.
They were reported missing from their Phoenix, Ariz. homes four days earlier.
According to the FBI affidavit, Bateman claims he engaged in sexual acts with his followers to fulfill “Godly duties.”
With News Wire Services
