[Warning: Potentially Triggering Content] A “self-proclaimed prophet” in rural Arizona is the target of a new FBI investigation after allegedly taking more than 20 wives, including minor children, as part of his supposed religious activities.
On Tuesday, NBC News reported on a new FBI affidavit outlining the law enforcement agency’s investigation into Samuel Rappylee Bateman (pictured above) of Colorado City, Arizona.
According to the report, Bateman is the leader of a small branch of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.
That church, known as FLDS, long ago broke off from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, commonly known as the Mormon church, after the latter outlawed polygamy within its ranks decades before. Related: Jessica Simpson Sent A Copy Of Her Book To Her Childhood Sex Abuser Bateman’s church sect follows the teachings of famed FLDS leader and convicted child rapist Warren Jeffs.
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