How undercover-film makers brought down a sinister polygamous ‘prophet’ | NOW ON NETFLIX

A new Netflix documentary is pulling back the curtain on the covert operation that led to the downfall of self-proclaimed prophet Samuel Bateman, the leader of a breakaway polygamous sect who exploited and sexually abused young girls he claimed as “wives.”

Four years after cult expert Christine Marie and her husband, videographer Tolga Katas, quietly embedded themselves inside the isolated community of Short Creek on the Utah-Arizona border, their undercover footage has become the centrepiece of ‘Trust Me: The False Prophet’, a four-part series released on 8 April.

The documentary traces how the couple risked their safety to expose a predator operating within a community already traumatised by the legacy of the FLDS (Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints) and its former leader, Warren Jeffs. Their work ultimately helped federal authorities build a case that sent Bateman to prison for 50 years.

A secret mission inside Short Creek

Marie and Katas originally arrived in Short Creek to investigate life in the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints after Jeffs’ 2011 imprisonment. But they soon discovered a new figure assuming Jeffs’ spiritual mantle: Samuel Bateman.

Bateman’s influence had grown rapidly. He presented himself as a prophet and gathered a loyal circle of men and dozens of “wives,” many of them young girls. The couple noticed disturbing behaviour and suspected ongoing sexual abuse, but law enforcement lacked direct evidence to intervene.

To gather proof, Marie and Katas posed as film-makers producing a documentary that would promote Bateman’s teachings. While Bateman basked in the attention, unaware of the couple’s real intentions, the duo filmed hundreds of hours of interactions, material that would later reveal the extent of the abuse.

According to the documentary, Bateman even allowed them to record moments in which he openly discussed criminal acts. In one instance, they captured him “admitting to crimes while coaching his underage victims to confirm his account during a car ride in November 2021.”

Exposing crimes hidden behind a religious facade

Evidence presented in the series shows Bateman had assembled a group involving at least 20 “wives,” nearly half of them minors, some as young as nine. Prosecutors later detailed how he transported children across state lines and orchestrated a sprawling sexual abuse network supported by loyal adult followers.

One key co-conspirator, Moroni Johnson, “actively facilitated the abuse by giving their own daughters to Bateman as wives.” Johnson was later sentenced to 25 years in prison.

The documentary also reveals how trauma bonding and religious manipulation kept the group’s members obedient. Even after Bateman’s arrest, some adult followers continued defending him.

From evidence to arrest: How the case broke open

The breakthrough came when Julia Johnson, the disillusioned wife of Moroni Johnson and mother to four of Bateman’s child “wives,” provided critical testimony to the FBI. Working with investigators, Marie and Katas supplied recordings, journals and footage from inside the group.

Authorities moved quickly. On 28 August 2022, Bateman was arrested after witnesses spotted “small fingers sticking out of the trailer's back door” of his vehicle. Three young girls were found inside.

Later, on 13 September, the FBI conducted a major raid on the Samuelite compound with the support of Marie and Katas. Although Bateman surrendered without resistance, the operation revealed the depth of indoctrination within the group. Inside, some women declared, “If they try, they die, and we die.”

Federal officials uncovered records, digital evidence and journals that detailed Bateman’s rituals, coercion and movements of minors. Even after his first arrest, he had instructed his adult followers to retrieve underage girls from state custody, an attempt that led to kidnapping charges.

The survivors who broke free

One of the documentary’s most powerful arcs centres on survivor Nomz Bistline, who was once among Bateman’s most loyal young wives. She became the first adult victim to testify in open court, a turning point in the case.

Nomz’s journey from indoctrinated follower to whistleblower is portrayed with emotional clarity. Upon learning through leaked documents that Christine Marie had acted as an FBI informant, she initially felt betrayed, “likening Marie to the Biblical Judas.” But after hearing Marie recount her own history of surviving a false prophet, Nomz began to understand the deception she had lived under.

The series also focuses on Julia Johnson and the remarkable courage it took to break from the group and protect her daughters. Director Rachel Dretzin calls her “the documentary’s emotional heart.”

A chilling portrait of a manipulative leader

Dretzin’s direction blends raw undercover footage with contemporary interviews, creating a film-within-a-film effect that shows both the crimes and the process of documenting them. She previously directed ‘Keep Sweet: Pray and Obey’, which chronicled Warren Jeffs’ crimes, and brings the same depth to this series.

The documentary portrays Bateman as both dangerous and absurd. Dretzin notes that he concocted grandiose fantasies, including plans to produce a music video meant to seduce the Queen of England into marrying him. Yet these delusions masked the brutality of his actions and the harm inflicted on his victims.

Marie remembered their first meeting vividly: “When I first met Sam Bateman, I didn't think much about him… he was a broken man.” At that time, he was newly divorced, financially desperate, and viewed as a local oddity, far from the prophet he would later claim to be.

Where Bateman and his followers are now

In April 2024, Bateman pleaded guilty to federal charges, including conspiracy to transport minors for sexual activity and conspiracy to commit kidnapping. He was sentenced that December to 50 years in prison, with lifelong supervision to follow.

His closest male associates each received lengthy prison terms:

• Moroni Johnson – 25 years
• Torrance Bistline – 35 years
• LaDell Bistline Jr. – life imprisonment

Several adult wives were also sentenced for roles in aiding Bateman.

Despite his imprisonment, Bateman “still has access to phones at his federal facility in Arizona,” maintaining daily contact with some loyal followers, a fact that alarms advocates and survivors.

Life in Short Creek after the expose

Marie and Katas have remained in the Short Creek area, continuing to support survivors and raise awareness about coercive control. They launched a fundraiser aiming to secure $100,000 to help victims with education, relocation, therapy and rebuilding their lives.

Many of the underage victims, once removed from the group and placed in foster care, eventually recognised the abuse they had endured, a painful but freeing realisation made possible only after escaping Bateman’s influence.

Where to watch the documentary

‘Trust Me: The False Prophet’ is now streaming on Netflix. Through its combination of undercover footage, survivor testimony and investigative reporting.