Victim Says Polygamous Sect Leader Samuel Bateman 'Stole My Childhood' After Receiving Extra 24-Year Sentence

The sentencing in Coconino County Superior Court marks the latest chapter in a case that has drawn national attention and was chronicled in the Netflix documentary Trust Me: The False Prophet.

The news came after Bateman, was convicted in June on three state counts of child abuse tied to an August 2022 traffic stop in Flagstaff, when officers found three girls, aged 11 to 14, inside an enclosed cargo trailer he was towing.

The trailer had camping chairs, a sofa and a makeshift toilet but no seat belts, air conditioning or proper ventilation, according to court records and the Coconino County Attorney's Office.

Trailer Conditions and Victim Impact Statement

Authorities were alerted after a member of the public noticed small fingers reaching through gaps in the trailer doors during the stop, prompting an investigation that would eventually lead to Bateman's state conviction.

Each of the three child abuse counts carried a mandatory sentence of between four and eight years, with Judge Joshua Steinlage ordering the 24-year term to run consecutively after Bateman completes his federal sentence.

One victim, who was 14 at the time of the traffic stop, told the court Bateman had sexually exploited her when she was 12 and that she has since undergone therapy to recover from 'things that should have never happened to me as a child.' 'He stole my childhood,' she said, urging the judge to reject Bateman's claims that he never intended to harm anyone.

Bateman, who represented himself and did not ask for leniency, told the court, 'I love these dear people with all my heart, and I had no intention in the entire world to harm them.'

He acknowledged the girls were in a hot trailer for hours and that ventilation was poor, but downplayed the conditions and said he was 'shocked as could possibly be' to learn they were still inside when pulled over.

Samuel Bateman Sentencing and Flds Offshoot Network

Coconino County Attorney Ammon Barker said in a statement the sentence was about 'accountability for the harm done to these young victims' and ensuring Bateman would 'never again be in a position to harm a child.'

Bateman was a trusted follower of Warren Jeffs, the former FLDS leader who is serving a life sentence in Texas for child sexual assault. His own 50-year federal sentence, imposed in December 2024, followed guilty pleas to conspiracy to transport a minor for criminal sexual activity and conspiracy to commit kidnapping, charges that involved coercing girls as young as nine into sexual acts with himself and other adults and plotting to abduct girls from protective custody.

The influence of the polygamous sect has waned significantly in the towns where it once dominated local government and law enforcement. A 2017 court order placed Colorado City and Hildale under supervision, removing the church from their governments and shared police department, and the area has since transformed so quickly that the towns were released from court-ordered supervision last summer, almost two years earlier than expected.

Bateman, a self-proclaimed prophet, previously claimed to have more than 20 'spiritual wives,' including 10 girls under the age of 18, according to federal filings and reporting tied to the Netflix series. In the state case, he argued he thought the girls had got out when the group stopped, even as he admitted knowing they had been in the trailer for hours with inadequate ventilation.

Nothing is confirmed yet so everything should be taken with a grain of salt regarding any unverified claims about the current whereabouts or identities of other followers still at large, as court documents and official statements remain the primary source for confirmed details.

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