Philippines arrests pastor wanted by US for child sex trafficking

MANILA, Philippines (AFP) — The Philippines said it had arrested a pastor wanted in the United States on child sex trafficking charges on Sunday, two weeks after a major police manhunt began for the self-proclaimed “Son of God.”

Apollo Quiboloy, who has close ties to former President Rodrigo Duterte, is the founder of the Philippines-based Church of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ (KOJC), which reportedly has millions of members.

In 2021, he was charged by the U.S. Department of Justice with sex trafficking girls and women between the ages of 12 and 25 to work as personal assistants or “chaplains” who were allegedly forced to have sex with him.

Quiboloy and four other cult members were taken into custody at the church compound in the southern city of Davao after negotiations between his representatives and the police and military, Philippine police spokeswoman Colonel Jean Fajardo told reporters.

“This afternoon they negotiated their peaceful surrender after we gave them a 24-hour ultimatum,” Fajardo said.

Four hours later, Quiboloy and the four cult members were flown by military aircraft to Manila, where they will be arrested and tried for “child abuse, sexual abuse and qualified (human) trafficking,” Fajardo added.

Interior Minister Benjamin Abalos announced Quiboloy's arrest on his official Facebook page on Sunday.

Quiboloy is also wanted by U.S. authorities for cash smuggling and a plot to bring church members into the United States using fraudulently obtained visas.

They were then forced to raise funds for a fake charity, collecting money that was actually used to finance church operations and the lavish lifestyles of church leaders, according to the U.S. FBI.

It is not known whether the United States has requested the extradition of Quiboloy, who the FBI says is at least 74 years old.

A spokesman for the US embassy referred media inquiries to the Philippine authorities.

“This is a concerted action by all parties involved,” Brigadier General Nicolas Torre, the regional police chief who led the manhunt, told reporters at a press conference confirming Quiboloy's arrest.

“Let us be proud. We have fulfilled our task today.”

During his months-long escape from justice, Quiboloy demanded that Manila provide a written guarantee that he would not be subjected to “extraordinary rendition” as a condition of his extradition.

The term refers to the U.S. government's practice of sending detained suspected members of terrorist organizations to another country for detention and interrogation.

On August 24, around 2,000 police officers were dispatched to the KOJC headquarters in Davao to execute an arrest warrant against Quiboloy.

Duterte and his daughter – incumbent Vice President Sara Duterte, who has fallen out with President Ferdinand Marcos – had publicly criticized the police search of the sect's 30-hectare property.

The vice president condemned “the gross abuse of power by the police in occupying the KOJC compound” and apologized to the cult members for urging them to vote for Marcos as president, saying, “They deserve better.”

Minutes after Quiboloy's arrest was announced, SMNI, a Philippine television station run by his sect, posted on its Facebook page pictures of members hugging uniformed police officers.

“After all the hardships and struggles, it is evident that the KOJC missionaries have embraced Pastor Apollo Quiboloy’s teaching to love not only their neighbors but also their enemies,” said a message accompanying the photos.