LOS ANGELES (KNX) — A federal indictment unsealed Friday has charged the founder of a Filipino church along with two of his top administrators. The trio were accused of orchestrating a sex trafficking ring that coerced girls and young women to have sex with the founder or face “eternal damnation.”
The superseding indictment adds to allegations made early last year against three Los Angeles-based administrators of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ, the Name Above Every Name (KOJC) church. KOJC boasts millions of followers in the Philippines and throughout the diaspora.
The nine defendants named in the original 42-count indictment were charged with participating in a labor-trafficking scheme that brought church members to the United States using fraudulently obtained visas. Victims were forced to solicit donations for a bogus charity, the Children’s Joy Foundation of Glendale, that were in fact used to finance church operations and leadership’s lavish lifestyles.
Members who were successful at soliciting for CJF were allegedly forced to enter sham marriages or obtain fraudulent student visas to remain in the United States and continue the scheme.
The superseding indictment, returned by a federal grand jury on Nov. 10, adds six new defendants to the 2020 indictment, including KOJC’s leader, Apollo Carreon Quiboloy.
Quiboloy is known as “the Appointed Son of God” to parishioners. Though three of his alleged co conspirators were arrested on Friday by federal authorities, Quiboloy and two others are believed to be in the Philippines.
The church leader is believed to be 71 years old whose primary residence is a KOJC compound in Davao City, Philippines. He also had large residences in Calabasas, Las Vegas, and Hawaii. He is reportedly a close friend and “spiritual advisor” of Filipino President Rodrigo Duterte. Earlier this year, Quiboloy was sued for libel by boxer Manny Pacquiao, a candidate in next year’s Filipino presidential election, after he accused the athlete of embezzling funds intended for a sports complex.
The superseding indictment charged Quiboloy and two chuch administrators with participating in a conspiracy to engage in sex trafficking by force, fraud, and coercion, as well as the sex trafficking of minors.
They allegedly recruited females ranging in age from 12 to 25 years to work as personal assistants, or “pastorals,” for Quiboloy. According to prsoecutors, victims prepared his meals, cleaned his homes, gave him massages, and were required to engage in sex with the leader — an activity termed “night duty” by pastorals. The indictment names five female victims, three of whom were minors when the alleged sex trafficking began.
Quiboloy and KOJC administrators coerced pastorals into performing “night duty” under “threat of physical and verbal abuse and eternal damnation,” the indictment alleged. “Quiboloy and other KOJC administrators told pastorals that performing ‘night duty’ was ‘God’s will’ and a privilege,” as well as “necessary demonstration” of their commitment to Quiboloy as “the Appointed Son of God.”
Defendants allegedly told victims who expressed hesitation that “they had the devil in them and risked eternal damnation.” Quiboloy would also allegedly threaten and physically abuse victims who attempted to leave the church, were not available to perform night duty at his beck and call, or communicated with men other than him,
Victims who managed to escape KOJC said they suffered retaliation in the form of threats, harassment, and allegations of criminal misconduct. “Defendant Quiboloy would give sermons broadcasted to KOJC members around the world, in which he would allege that victims who escaped had engaged in criminal conduct and sexually promiscuous activity, and therefore faced eternal damnation, in order to discourage other victims from leaving,” the indictment alleged.
Other defendants charged in the superseding indictment include Teresita Tolibas Danda, 59, of Davao City; Helen Panilag, 59, of Davao City; Felina Salinas, 50, of Kapolei, Hawaii; Guia Cabactulan, 61, of Van Nuys; Marissa Duenas, 43, of Van Nuys; Amanda Estopare, 50, of Van Nuys; Bettina Padilla Roces, 48, of Reseda; and Maria De Leon, 72, of Los Angeles.
The three arrested today are expected to make initial appearances in federal court in L.A. and Honolulu.
The sex trafficking conspiracy charge alleged in the indictment carries a statutory maximum penalty of life in federal prison. The five substantive sex trafficking charges each carry a mandatory minimum penalty of 15 years to life. Fraud, cash smuggling, and money laundering offenses in the indictment carry maximum penalties ranging from five to 20 years.
The FBI is asking potential victims or anyone with information about KOJC activities to contact the agency’s L.A. Field Office at (310) 477-6565, or online at FBI.gov/tips.
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