COLUMBUS (OH)
East Idaho News [Idaho Falls, ID]
July 9, 2026
By Jordan Thornblad, ABC4
The brother of an apostle for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints pleaded guilty in a federal court in Ohio on Thursday, admitting that he coerced and enticed a minor, an offense that carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years and up to life in prison.
Wade Christofferson, 73, admitted to coercing and enticing two minors under the age of 10 years old in Ohio and Utah. He also reportedly committed “hands-on sexual abuse of the child in Utah and the second victim in Ohio approximately 20 times,” according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Southern Ohio.
In November 2025, Wade Christofferson was booked into the Salt Lake County Jail on a warrant from the Federal Bureau of Investigation after police say he was overheard on a sexually explicit FaceTime call with a minor victim. He had also sent coded letters to the victim’s Utah home that referenced sexual activity for approximately six months, according to court documents.
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A few weeks after the FaceTime call, police in Dublin, Ohio, received a report regarding the alleged sexual abuse of an Ohio minor by Wade Christofferson that occurred when the victim was approximately 7 and 8 years old.
The attorney’s office says the defendant committed hands-on sexual abuse of the child in Utah and the second victim in Ohio approximately 20 times.
Wade Christofferson also wrote the victim “top secret” handwritten messages and advised they were only for the victim to read, according to prosecutors. In the letters, he reportedly used code words for sexually explicit activity. For example, “SS” is believed to indicate “Secret Spanks,” and “Snow” was a code word for female genitalia, prosecutors said.
Dublin police executed a search warrant at Wade Christofferson’s home in mid-November and seized his electronic devices, as well as completed a forensic examination of his phone. Charging documents say they discovered a search history consisting of “criminal defense attorneys sex crimes Columbus Ohio” and “In Ohio do clergy have to report child abuse confessions” as well as information about leaving the country.
Dominick S. Gerace II, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio; Jason Cromartie, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Cincinnati Division; Dublin Police Chief Justin Paez and other members of the FBI’s Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force announced the guilty plea entered on Thursday before U.S. District Judge Edmund A. Sargus, Jr.
Wade Christofferson’s brother is Elder D. Todd Christofferson, who is a Latter-day Saint apostle and a member of the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. ABC4.com reached out to the church for comment on the arrest of Wade Christofferson; a spokesman responded, saying that the church has no comment.