Wife of child-molesting ex-Mormon figure once based in Chicago area calls him 'caring,' 'a wonderful father'

Wade Christofferson is suspected of sexually abusing numerous children — young family members, as well as congregants of a Chicago-area Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints community where he was a member and leader decades ago.

Some of the abuse happened inside his family homes — whether in far northwest suburban Crystal Lake where he used to live, or in a suburb of Columbus, Ohio, where he resided more recently, until his 2025 arrest, according to interviews and court records.

But in a “support” letter to a federal judge — as sentencing is scheduled this coming week in a criminal case in Ohio that’s focused on Christofferson’s more-recent sexual misconduct against minors — Christofferson’s wife only briefly alludes to that horror.

Instead, Rebecca Christofferson emphasized to U.S. District Judge Edmund A. Sargus Jr. in her letter that her husband is “intelligent, kind, compassionate and caring.”

“He has been a wonderful father to our 6 children and a good husband.”

“His faith and church activity have always been very important to him and have been instrumental in making sure our children had a strong religious foundation.”

“He has a quick wit, a dry humor and looks to see the good in others.”

She wrote that her 73-year-old husband has “frequently expressed great remorse for his actions” — the only direct reference to Wade Christofferson’s admitted sexual misconduct in her communication.

She also mentioned he has “several health challenges,” and told Sargus that “being able to continue to associate with other members of our faith would be a source of strength to him in his coming time of incarceration.”

It’s unclear whether that’s a subtle ask that Wade Christofferson be sent to a federal prison near Utah.

That’s the center of Mormonism where Rebecca Christofferson has now moved, with her Columbus-area home sold within the last few months for $575,000, property and court records show.

See Rebecca Christofferson’s letter below

U.S. District Court

Among the family in Utah: D. Todd Christofferson, one of Wade Christofferson’s brothers and one of the top Mormon leaders in the world who’s faced criticism for not going to police when he has said he first learned in or about 2020 that his brother may have molested kids years earlier.

The abuse that’s been part of Wade Christofferson’s ongoing criminal case occurred as recently as 2025, raising questions about whether it could have been prevented if D. Todd Christofferson spoke up earlier.

While another brother penned a letter to Sargus, D. Todd Christofferson apparently didn’t.

Wade Christofferson faces at least 10 years in prison after pleading guilty earlier this year in his criminal case. He could face up to life in custody and a fine in the hundreds of thousands of dollars, in addition to paying restitution to victims.

With sex abuse and coverups an ongoing problem in Mormonism, it’s been common for members and leaders to speak up on behalf of those implicated in child sex crimes, much to the dismay of victims and their advocates.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Another letter submitted to Sargus came from Dennis Johnson, who wrote that he’s known Wade Christofferson “in several capacities, including as his bishop . . . as a close friend, and as a fellow volunteer in community and church service activities.”

“There is no minimizing the seriousness of the offense for which Wade now stands before the Court,” Johnson wrote, adding that over months of jail visits, he’s “observed genuine remorse for his actions.”

Another letter writer is a brother-in-law to Wade Christofferson who noted in his correspondence that he’s a professor emeritus at Brigham Young University, a Mormon institution.

An attorney for Wade Christofferson notes in recently filed court records: “The letters do not contradict the guilty plea or negate the harm done to the victims. They are offered solely to give the Court a fuller picture of the defendant’s background, available support, and longstanding habits of service.”

Although the intent of the letters submitted to Sargus was likely not to reinforce suspicions that certain church leaders covered up Wade Christofferson’s past instances of abuse, and therefore put more youth at risk, several of the letters indicate he continued to interact with young people while in Ohio.

Earlier, while in the Chicago area, he’d been briefly excommunicated by church authorities over child sex abuse that he admitted to, according to interviews. Church leaders apparently never told police or their suburban church community.

Probation officials have indicated that Wade Christofferson has “$1,363,900 in assets,” though his attorney wrote that there are “accounts expressly identified as spousal, an automobile titled to Mrs. Christofferson” and other matters that raise questions about the accuracy of that total.

“Those categories must be traced, not added together as though every dollar were a current asset wholly owned and freely available to Mr. Christofferson,” the lawyer, Darren Meade, wrote.