Sentencing Set for Polygamous Leader Bateman in Arizona

Samuel Bateman, a polygamous sect leader already serving a 50-year federal sentence for orchestrating sex involving children, is set to be sentenced on separate state convictions for hauling three girls, ages 11 to 14, through a northern Arizona community in an unventilated trailer discovered during a 2022 traffic stop. Each of the three state counts carries a mandatory four-to-eight-year term, with a judge able to run them consecutively or concurrently. Bateman led a small offshoot of the FLDS and has claimed to have dozens of spiritual wives, including underage girls, while traveling across several states to expand his network. In court, he acknowledged the girls were inside the hot trailer and downplayed the ventilation, and he represented himself at trial, insisting he believed the girls had escaped when stopped or that he was shocked by their continued presence. Federal authorities described Bateman as having built an extensive network across Arizona, Utah, Colorado and Nebraska connected to Warren Jeffs’ legacy. The case highlights ongoing federal and state efforts to address abuse within extremist polygamous communities and the danger posed to minors by leaders who command private networks.