Polygamous sect leader convicted of child abuse after girls found trapped in Arizona trailer

A polygamous sect leader already serving a 50-year federal prison term for child sex crimes was found guilty on Friday of state child abuse charges linked to three young girls discovered in a trailer he was towing through Arizona.Authorities were alerted to the trailer in August 2022 after someone noticed small fingers poking through gaps in its doors. Officers stopped Samuel Bateman's vehicle near Flagstaff and found three girls, aged 11 to 14, inside an enclosed space that contained a sofa, camping chairs and a makeshift toilet.In the federal case, Bateman was convicted of forcing girls as young as 9 into sexual acts and conspiring to kidnap children from state care. His crimes are the subject of a Netflix documentary series.Bateman has previously claimed to have more than 20 "spiritual wives," including 10 minors. Testifying in his own defence, he told jurors he would never hurt those he loved. He admitted he knew the girls had spent hours in a hot trailer with poor airflow but downplayed the severity."I just trusted myself as a driver," Bateman said. "I asked God to bless me every time we hopped in that vehicle."He claimed he believed the girls had left the trailer during a stop and was "as shocked as could possibly be" to discover they were still inside when police pulled him over.Prosecutor Eric Ruchensky told the jury: "It's common sense that you don't carry people in a trailer designed for cargo on a hot day with no ventilation."Bateman acted as his own lawyer in the state trial, despite the judge barring mention of his federal conviction. He repeatedly raised it himself, prompting the judge to strike those remarks.The jury took about 40 minutes to convict Bateman on all three child abuse counts. Each carries a mandatory sentence of four to eight years. A sentencing hearing is set for August 25.BackgroundBateman, who called himself a prophet, travelled across several Western states building an offshoot of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, a polygamous group historically based in the Arizona-Utah border towns of Colorado City and Hildale.He was a trusted follower of Warren Jeffs, the former sect leader now serving a life sentence in Texas for child sexual assault.The mainstream Mormon church abandoned polygamy in 1890 and strictly forbids it today.The polygamous sect's hold on the border towns has weakened considerably. A court order in 2017 removed the church from local governance, and the communities were released from court supervision last summer, nearly two years ahead of schedule. Practising sect members are now a small minority in the area.Catch the latest world news and top headlines. Download the TOI App.