Netflix’s ‘Trust Me: The False Prophet’: Who Is Samuel Bateman and Where Is He Now?

Credit: Netflix

Netflix‘s four-part documentary series Trust Me: The False Prophet follows the new leader of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (FLDS), Samuel Bateman. The polygamist cult leader claims to be the heir to FLDS’s imprisoned leader, Warren Jeffs.

Cult expert Christine Marie and her husband, videographer Tolga Katas, infiltrated Bateman’s group and exposed the crimes of its leader. They gained Bateman’s trust and uncovered evidence of abuse against young women. The documentary sheds light on both the cult leader and his alleged victims.

The documentary is directed by Rachel Dretzin, who previously helmed Keep Sweet: Pray and Obey, a documentary on Jeffs. Dretzin met with the couple and reviewed the footage they shot before taking on the project. She shared:

Marie and Katas met Bateman in 2017 while documenting the lives of people in the local FLDS community. He was part of the community in Short Creek, Utah, but he was not among the higher-ups initially. With Jeffs’s arrest and imprisonment for s*xual assault of minors in 2011, the organization was left without a leader.

Bateman seized the opportunity and claimed himself to be Jeffs’s heir. He gathered followers and married multiple times, some of them being underage girls as young as nine. When Marie and Katas met him for the first time, he was still married to his original wife.

However, when they met him next in 2019, he had married again. After another marriage, he began to draw negative attention in the community. Bateman disappeared for some time before returning with multiple women and children. Bateman allowed the couple to document his life, believing that he could get his ‘message’ to the world.

What Marie and Katas saw was evil abuse of power. He isolated the women from their families and even forced them to engage in group s*xual encounters.

Was Samuel Bateman from Trust Me: The False Prophet Arrested?

Christine Marie and Tolga Katas made it their primary mission to capture evidence against Samuel Bateman. In November 2021, Marie taped damning evidence against the cult leader. During a conversation, as seen in the documentary, Bateman confessed to many crimes with underage girls.

The confessions were also corroborated by victims who were present with Marie and Bateman at the time. Marie shared in the documentary, “I thought, ‘I got the bombshell.’ Not only is he confessing, but we have the victims right there, confirming it. So what else do you need?”

However, when she took it to the local police, she was told the evidence wasn’t sufficient. Marie and Katas continued to gather evidence. In the meantime, the FBI launched an investigation into Bateman. However, it was a traffic stop in Flagstaff, Arizona, that changed things for them.

Bateman was arrested during the August 2022 stop. The FBI quickly built a case against Bateman. They raided his compound within weeks, thus gathering enough evidence to put him behind bars for a long time.

What Happened to the Survivors?

Julia Johnson with Christine Marie in Trust Me: The False Prophet | Credits: Netflix

According to the documentary, Samuel Bateman had at least 20 wives, and half of them were minors. After Bateman’s arrest, all of his underage wives were placed in the same group home by the Utah Division of Child and Family Services. This turned out to be a mistake.

Bateman orchestrated a kidnapping plot from prison in November 2022, which led to eight minors vanishing from state custody. They were eventually recovered in Spokane, Washington. After that incident, all the girls were placed in separate foster homes. While the minors were able to see what happened to them, it was more complicated for the adult women. Rachel Dretzin shared with Tudum:

However, three of Bateman’s wives turned against him and were even instrumental in bringing him down. Julia Johnson was the wife of Bateman’s follower, Moroni. Both she and her two daughters were forced to become Bateman’s wives. Moroni was sentenced to 25 years in prison after pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit trafficking of a minor for s*xual purposes.

Julia’s daughter, Moretta Johnson, and Naomi “Nomz” Bistline were the only two adult followers of Bateman who testified against him in court. They were arrested and sentenced to prison time for the kidnapping plot, but they have since fully left the community.

Moretta moved out of Short Creek, got married, and started a family. Nomz still lives in Short Creek, but plans to leave soon.

Where Is Samuel Bateman Now?

Samuel Bateman in a still from Trust Me: The False Prophet | Credits: Netflix

In December 2024, Samuel Bateman was sentenced to 50 years in prison. His crimes included conspiracy to commit transportation of a minor for criminal s*xual activity and conspiracy to commit kidnapping. According to Dretzin, Bateman still has a hold on some of his followers and his adult wives, even from prison. She shared:

Several men who were close to Bateman were also arrested. They currently serve lengthy prison terms. Julia’s husband, Moroni, is serving a 25-year sentence. Nomz’s guardian, LaDell Bistline, is serving life in prison, while his brother Torrance is serving 35 years.

After the documentary wraps up with Bateman and his accomplices in jail, you are still left wondering about the fates of those who continue to follow his ideals. It’s hard not to feel a quiet ache for all the lives upended by this scandal. Rachel Dritzen doesn’t sensationalize Christine Marie and Tolga Katas’s footage; she simply lets them speak. A small measure of comfort comes from knowing that at least a few of the survivors have started leading a normal life.

What do you think of this harrowing documentary about the cult leader and his victims? Let us know in the comments below!

Trust Me: The False Prophet is now available for streaming on Netflix.