Megachurch Pastor Apollo Quiboloy in standoff with Philippines police over alleged child-sex trafficking

By Leonardo Blair, Senior Reporter Monday, August 26, 2024

Former Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte criticized leaders of the Philippine National Police Monday after some 2,000 officers raided the 74-acre compound of fugitive televangelist and Kingdom of Jesus Christ leader Apollo Quiboloy in a bid to arrest him on charges of child abuse and human trafficking, which he and his followers have denied.

Quiboloy, who is also on the FBI’s Most Wanted list for similar charges, including conspiracy to engage in sex trafficking by force, fraud, and the sex trafficking of children, remains on the run as his members continue to wage public protests and accumulate charges as they seek to prevent his arrest. At least one person reportedly died during the raid and several others were injured.

“We sympathize with the members of the KOJC for having become victims of political harassment, persecution, violence, and abuse of authority. This certainly puts a dark stain on the hands of those involved in today’s incident, led by no less than the top police official of the region,” the former Philippines president said in a statement Saturday cited by Inquirer.net.

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Some 18 members of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ Church were arrested Monday during a protest in front of their compound in Davao City, GMA News Online reported.

Ferdinand Topacio, a lead attorney for Quiboloy, told Bilyonaryo News Channel that the church is considering filing a human rights complaint to the United Nations regarding the police raid, arguing that the country is under a “virtual dictatorship” and no local court or institution can help them.

Duterte, who is the designated administrator of the church’s frozen assets, said in his statement that police “forced their way” into the church’s compound, causing the death of a member but police say the victim died from fatigue.

An indictment from the Department of Justice in 2021 charged Quiboloy and two of his top administrators with trafficking young women and girls in the U.S. who were coerced into having sex with him under threats of “eternal damnation.” The controversial megachurch pastor allegedly claimed that sex with him was a “privilege” and “God’s will.”

“Defendant Quiboloy and other KOJC administrators coerced pastorals (personal assistants) into performing ‘night duty’ — that is, sex — with defendant Quiboloy under the threat of physical and verbal abuse and eternal damnation by defendant Quiboloy and other KOJC administrators,” the indictment from the U.S. Department of Justice alleges. “Defendant Quiboloy and other KOJC administrators told pastorals that performing ‘night duty’ was ‘God’s will’ and a privilege, as well as a necessary demonstration of the pastoral’s commitment to give her body to defendant Quiboloy as ‘The Appointed Son of God.’”

The 2021 charges were an expansion of allegations made in early 2020 against three Los Angeles-based administrators of the church and names nine defendants, including the now 74-year-old Quiboloy, and his two administrators, Teresita Tolibas Dandan, also known as “Tessie,” and “Sis Ting,” now 62, of Davao City. The “international administrator” was one of the top overseers of KOJC and the Glendale-based Children’s Joy Foundation in the United States.

The other top administrator, Felina Salinas, also known as “Sis Eng Eng,” 53, of Kapolei, Hawaii, allegedly collected and secured passports, and other documents from KOJC workers in Hawaii. She also allegedly directed funds solicited from church members to church officials in the Philippines.

Quiboloy, Dandan and Salinas are charged in count one of a superseding indictment, which alleges the sex trafficking conspiracy. Each of them is charged in at least three of five substantive counts of sex trafficking by force, fraud and coercion.

Quiboloy, who claims to have 4 million tithing followers in the Philippines, 2 million more overseas, and reaches 600 million viewers worldwide through his TV station, is a former member of the United Pentecostal Church. He founded the Restorationism church in 1985 after he claimed to have received a calling from God. According to Asia Times, Quiboloy claims that God came to his mother in the form of a cloud after he was born, and declared, "That's my son."