DAVAO CITY (MindaNews / 12 Sept)—Shortly after the Senate investigation here last Sept. 6, five former members of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ (KOJC) had come forward to report the alleged sexual abuses by Pastor Apollo C. Quiboloy, according to the chief of the Davao City Police Office (DCPO).
Pastor Apollo Quiboloy (right) and counsel Israelito Torreon during the religious leader’s arrest on Sept. 8, 2024. Photo from the Facebook page of Interior and Local Government Secretary Benhur Abalos.
Col. Hansel M. Marantan, DCPO director, claimed in a press conference Thursday that the victims used to be “pastorals of the innermost circle” before they left KOJC last year.
He said that they reached out to him immediately after the Senate investigation, in aid of legislation, on the police operations at the KOJC compound called by Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa.
The city police chief said that he spoke with two of them face to face while the three others via video conference.
Marantan said that the alleged victims were crying as they recounted how they were sexually abused at the age of 13.
He said that they were lured to join KOJC when they were 12 as they were offered free education, but were never sent to school.
“They were shaped and they were brainwashed and indoctrinated, until such time that they accepted their fate. Pero mali yan (but that is wrong) under the law. If sexually molested—minor at that—it is equivalent to violation under the law,” he said.
In a statement shared to media, lawyer Israelito Torreon, lead counsel of KOJC, said that he has yet to verify the statements and identities of the alleged victims with the city police director but asked the Philippine National Police (PNP) to handle the investigations with care and professionalism.
He said that he does not want to speculate on whether the allegations were true or fabricated to “smear the good name and reputation” of the religious leader.
“I pray that the PNP (Philippine National Police) would handle the investigations of these new alleged cases with care and professionalism and not subject the same to much publicity owing to the high possibility that these alleged new complainants may have been influenced only by some forces whose aim is not to obtain justice but to score much-needed political points,” he said.
Marantan claimed that “carnal knowledge” with the victims was the final rites before becoming “pastorals of the innermost circle.”
He said as of the “pastorals of the innermost circle,” they lived like “queens and princesses,” enjoying more privileges than other members of the religious group.
He said that the alleged victims wanted to report the abuse when they left KOJC but were reluctant to do so because they were afraid to share their experiences of the sexual assault.
Marantan said that police would file charges against Quiboloy for violation of Republic Act 7610, also known as “Special Protection of Children Against Child Abuse, Exploitation and Discrimination Act.”
“You know what’s the common situation among the victims? They all come from broken families. Those who fit the standards of Quiboloy, kinuha nya (were recruited) and prepared them to be pastoral, and became [part of the] ‘innermost circle’,” he said.
Marantan said that the five victims chose to remain silent despite the alleged abuses as they were told that the “angels of death” would come after them if they break the “code of secrecy” by reporting the sexual assault to authorities “to get even.”
“If there is a violation, kunyari sinabi mo na (for example, if you say that) they are sexually molested by Quiboloy, papasok na yung Angels of Death (the Angels of Death would come in) to ‘get even,’ and ‘to get even’ means papatayin ka at pati yung mga genes line mo, yung mga magulang mo, mga kapatid mo (you and your family, including your parents and siblings will be killed),” he said.
On Sunday, authorities arrested Quiboloy and his co-accused—Jackielyn Roy, Cresente Canada, Ingrid Canada, and Sylvia Cemañes—inside the KOJC compound. Another co-accused, Paulene Canada, was earlier arrested last July 11 at her residence in Emily Homes Subdivision in Barangay Cabantian here.
According to Brig. Gen. Nicolas Torre III, regional police chief, Quiboloy was hiding at the ACQ College of Ministry, a bible school inside KOJC compound.
He said that Quiboloy was taken from the compound and boarded one of the vehicles escorted by the PNP’s Aviation Security Group to the airport.
The religious leader was flown to Manila via a C-130 plane, which earlier landed at the Tactical Operations Group (TOG)-Davao at the Old Airport in Sasa located near the KOJC compound.
Quiboloy and his co-accused are facing charges of child abuse and qualified human trafficking.
The suspects have two warrants of arrest issued by the Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 12 in Davao City and the RTC in Pasig City in April this year.
Last May 28, the Supreme Court’s Second Division ordered the transfer of the two criminal cases from the RTC in Davao to the RTC in Quezon City.
The Senate also ordered the arrest of Quiboloy last March 19 after he was cited in contempt for continuously defying its order to appear in the investigations of the Senate Committee on Women, Children, Family Relations, and Gender Equality. (Antonio L. Colina IV / MindaNews)
