Samuel Bateman Emil Selmann

Samuel Rappylee Bateman (born 1976) is an American convicted sex offender who led a small polygamous splinter sect of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (FLDS) based in Short Creek, Arizona. Self-styled as a prophet of and successor to imprisoned FLDS leader Warren Jeffs, Bateman assembled more than 20 "spiritual wives" between 2019 and 2022. At least 10 of these wives were minors, with some victims as young as nine years old. He was arrested in 2022, pleaded guilty in April 2024, and was sentenced in December 2024 to 50 years in federal prison.

His case was the subject of the 2026 Netflix documentary series Trust Me: The False Prophet, directed by Rachel Dretzin.

Background

Bateman was raised within the tight-knit FLDS community in Colorado City, Arizona. His father DeLoy Bateman was a teacher. Public records indicate he was once in a monogamous marriage and had children while working in local trades.

The FLDS is a polygamous offshoot of the mainstream Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), which officially renounced polygamy in 1890. Central to FLDS doctrine is the belief that the church president is a living prophet who receives direct revelation from God. The church was led by Rulon Jeffs until 2002, after which leadership passed to his son, Warren Jeffs. Following Jeffs's arrest in 2006 and his conviction and life sentence in 2011 for the sexual assault of underage girls, leadership of the FLDS fell into uncertainty and the organisation began to fragment.

Rise to power

Around 2019, following a period in which FLDS leadership had banned married couples from having sex (a consequence of Warren Jeffs being unable to conduct new marriages from prison), Bateman began claiming his own prophetic authority.

He proclaimed himself a successor-prophet, telling followers that Jeffs had died. He assembled a breakaway group of approximately 50 people who came to be known informally as the "Samuelites".

Bateman recruited followers across Arizona, Utah, Colorado, and Nebraska, claiming to possess what he described as "impressions of Heavenly Father's will". He harboured grand ambitions: during early sessions with followers, he declared his intention to become "the most influential person on Earth" and to govern North and South America. He also launched a self-help YouTube channel partly in hopes of attracting international attention.

Male followers were pressured into surrendering their daughters and wives to Bateman as "spiritual brides". Those who refused risked being banished from salvation under the sect's doctrine. Bateman also channelled funds from followers into the purchase of luxury vehicles.

Criminal conduct

From 2019 to 2022, Bateman amassed more than 20 "spiritual wives," at least 10 of whom were children when he first engaged in sexual conduct with them, with the youngest aged nine.

Investigation and arrest

Undercover documentary work

In 2021, cult psychology researcher Dr. Christine Marie and her videographer husband Tolga Katas, who had relocated to the Short Creek area to study FLDS culture, were approached by Bateman, who sought to participate in a documentary project he believed would spread his message. Unaware that the couple were secretly gathering evidence of his crimes, Bateman allowed them extensive access to his compound, followers, and gatherings.

While traveling with Bateman in 2021, Marie recorded him describing acts of ritualistic sexual abuse. She subsequently contacted law enforcement and became an FBI informant. The footage and intelligence gathered by Marie and Katas formed a significant part of the evidentiary case against Bateman. Bateman was initially charged with child endangerment.

In September 2022, federal agents conducted a raid on his compound in Colorado City. Bateman was subsequently charged with destruction of records in an official proceeding, arising from a phone call in which he instructed followers to delete his account on the encrypted messaging application Signal and destroy other documents.

A 57-count superseding federal indictment was subsequently filed, naming Bateman and multiple co-defendants.

Legal proceedings

Guilty plea

On April 1, 2024, Bateman pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit transportation of a minor for criminal sexual activity and conspiracy to commit kidnapping. In his plea agreement, Bateman admitted to regularly engaging in sexual conduct with ten child victims as well as at least twelve adult wives.

Sentencing

On December 9, 2024, U.S. District Judge Susan M. Brnovich sentenced Bateman to 50 years in federal prison on each count, to be served concurrently, followed by lifetime supervised release. Judge Brnovich stated that the harm inflicted on Bateman's victims was "absolutely immeasurable" and described the children as having been reduced to "sex slaves".

Media coverage

Trust Me: The False Prophet (2026) is a four-part Netflix documentary series directed by Emmy- and Peabody Award-winning filmmaker Rachel Dretzin, who previously directed Keep Sweet: Pray and Obey (2022), an FLDS docuseries about Warren Jeffs. The series draws extensively on footage and recordings gathered by Dr. Marie and Katas during their time in Bateman's community, as well as court documents and testimony from survivors. Two of Bateman's former wives, Naomi "Nomz" Bistline and Moretta Johnson, appeared in the documentary and testified against him at trial.