Wade Christofferson Pleads Guilty to Coercion and Enticement of Minors

Overview

• Wade S. Christofferson, who pleaded guilty Thursday, admitted to coercing and enticing two children under age 10 through sexually explicit FaceTime calls, coded letters and repeated hands-on abuse.
• Federal prosecutors say the conduct happened in Ohio and Utah and that the plea carries a statutory prison term of at least 10 years and up to life with a requirement to register as a sex offender.
• Investigators arrested Christofferson in November after he was overheard on a sexually explicit call and later executed searches at his Ohio home that recovered electronics, a child-size door to a modified attic crawl space and incriminating phone history.
• Christofferson is the younger brother of LDS leader D. Todd Christofferson, who acknowledged this year that he learned about earlier allegations around 2020 and did not notify police, a fact that has renewed questions about institutional reporting.
• The case was handled by a multi-jurisdictional team using Project Safe Childhood resources and leaves survivors waiting for sentencing while prompting broader scrutiny of how faith institutions address past abuse claims.