On Friday, December 2, 2022, the FBI filed an affidavit against Samuel Bateman, who’s a polygamist culture leader of Arizona, know about his wife and latest news
Samuel is reportedly accused of marrying at least 20 women, many of whom were minors.
As per a report by the New York Post, the cult leader is believed to run a splinter group, which is previously associated with Mormon Fundementalist Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter Day Saints.
Who Is Samuel Bateman Arizona Polygamist Cult Leader, His Wife, FBI Raids, News, Reddit, Photos
"Samuel Batman allegedly watched three of his adult male followers have sex with his daughters, one of whom was only 12-years-old."
The word is "rape." Not just "have sex." Sex with a child is rape.
— John Tomlinson (@johntomlinson) December 4, 2022
According to the affidavit filed by the FBI, the 46-year-old has been behind bars under the custody of Arizona police since September, this year. He was arrested by the cops on the suspicion of marrying several minors.
According to a report by Salt Lake Tribune, the accused has been married to as many as 20 wives, out of whom many are below 15 years of age.
The outlet also noted that the youngest wife of Bateman is reportedly 9-year-old. One of the underage wife is suspected to be Bateman’s own daughter.
As per the several local outlets, Samuel was a follower of Warren Jeffs. For those who are unfamiliar with Warren Jeffs, let us tell you, the 67-year-old was the leader within the polygamous denomination of the Latter Day Saint movement.
As per the statement given by an FBI Special agent, Dawn A. Martin, who revealed that in 2019, Samuel fell out with Jeff’s as the former started to claim that he was a prophet.
After falling out with Jeff’s, he instantly gained 50 followers and married 20 women including the young girls.
According to a report by Associated Press, the authorities started investigating the matter in 2019 after a family member accused Bateman of planning to marry his teenage daughter.
The investigators of the Arizona Department of Public Safety arrested him on August 28, 2022. The cult leader was arrested when he pulled over due to one of his trailers being towed and in the trailer there was a girl riding inside.
Soon enough the FBI started investigating as they suspected him for trafficking minor girls to his followers in other states. The authorities believed that he was transporting the girls across Nebraska, Nevada, Arizona and Utah.
As per the audio recording of November 2021, Samuel allegedly can be heard saying that he had sent his underaged wives to please his adult followers. At the time, he reportedly claimed that he had been told to do so by God.
As per the orders given by US Magistrate, the judge Camille Bibles, Bateman will remain under the State Custody until the course of investigation.
The order was given to protect his underaged wives from any potential danger. As per the statement given by the Judge Bible, the courts have “tremendous interest,” in protecting the people who can’t protect themselves.
Let us remind you, back in September, this year, as many as 8 of Bateman’s underaged wives were sent to a group home.
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