Bateman already serving 50-year federal term for coercing minors and kidnapping
The state convictions trace to an August 2022 traffic stop in Flagstaff, the AP reported. Officers searching the trailer being towed by the vehicle discovered three girls, ages 11 to 14. The trailer had been fitted with a makeshift toilet, sofa, and camping chairs but lacked air conditioning and seat belts, and was unventilated, according to the AP.
Someone had tipped off authorities about the trailer after seeing small fingers reaching through gaps in the doors, the AP reported.
Each of the three child abuse counts carries a mandatory sentence between four and eight years under Arizona law, with the sentencing judge retaining discretion to impose the terms either consecutively or concurrently.
Bateman, 50, leads a small group described as an offshoot of the polygamous sect once led by Warren Jeffs. He is currently serving a 50-year federal sentence after a separate conviction for coercing girls as young as 9 to submit to sex acts with him and other adults, and for scheming to kidnap girls from protective custody, the AP reported.