The leader of a polygamous group residing on the border of Arizona and Utah, who is also a self-proclaimed prophet, had taken in at least 20 women as wives, including children, and claimed that it was the will of the “Heavenly Father” for him to participate in sexual acts with them.
Samuel Rappylee Bateman, 46, led a small breakaway group of the (FDLS) Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.
According to an affidavit filed in a federal court, the man told his followers that it was God’s will for him to perform sexual acts with them, including the minors. The affidavit provides insight into the case that became public in August.
Federal authorities also charged three of his wives with kidnapping after eight minors linked to Bateman’s group fled from their foster homes.
Donnae Barlow and Naomi Bistline appeared in federal court on Wednesday and remain in custody until next week’s hearings. Moretta Rose Johnson is still awaiting extradition in Washington State.
The case filing in the women’s case focuses on Samuel Bateman, who the FBI claims orchestrated sexual activities involving minors, and gifted wives to his male friends. The men supported the group financially and gifted him their wives or daughters to marry.
The 46-year-old man entered a not-guilty plea to state charges of child abuse and federal tampering with evidence charges. The federal trial will begin in January, and he will remain imprisoned in Arizona until then.
Bateman was once a part of the FDLS, but he recently left the church to form his group. He was among the most loyal and trusted followers of the church’s leader Warren Jeffs. Jeff got a life sentence after being found guilty of child sex abuse and underage marriages.
The FDLS is also a breakaway group from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, also known as the Mormon Church. Polygamy was among the church’s teachings in the early days, but the church abandoned the teaching in the late 1800s, and it is now strictly forbidden.
Federal officials accuse Bateman of engaging in horrific sexual acts with children and say that he told his followers to help him cover his tracks. However, his followers vehemently deny the claims.
Bateman and his group lived in Colorado City among devout FLDS members and former FLDS members.
Bateman once tried to make his daughter his wife, but she told her mother, and they moved out of their home and got a restraining order against him. It happened in 2019, and she was his only wife before he started marrying more women.
Police arrested Bateman in August after they found three underage girls in a trailer he was driving. The girls told police they did not have medical needs. He posted bond, but police arrested him again in September, charging him with obstruction of justice. Police were investigating whether he was transporting them out of the state for sexual activities, but he told his followers to delete messages and get passports. During his arrest, authorities found nine children in his home and placed them in foster care, and eight of them later escaped.
Authorities found the eight girls last week in Spokane in a vehicle driven by Bateman’s wife, Moretta Johnson.
