EXPLAINER: Who is Apollo Quiboloy?

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The Department of Justice (DOJ) reported Tuesday that the US government's request for the extradition of Apollo Quiboloy has been filed before the Makati Regional Trial Court.

Quiboloy and several others were indicted by US prosecutors in 2021 for allegedly operating a sex trafficking scheme that threatened victims, some as young as 12, with "eternal damnation" and physical abuse.

The US court issued an arrest warrant for Quiboloy, with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) also seeking his extradition to face charges in the United States.

Who is Quiboloy, and what legal troubles has he faced?

KOJC and political connections

Quiboloy is the founder of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ, The Name Above Every Name (KOJC), a religious organization established in Davao City in 1985.

He is also known by the aliases "Pastor," "ACQ," and "The Appointed Son of God."

Quiboloy broadcast his sermons through various media platforms, including television and radio. According to KOJC, his messages were initially aired through block-time arrangements on different stations before he established Sonshine Media Network International (SMNI).

During the previous administration, Quiboloy was known as a friend and spiritual adviser to former President Rodrigo Duterte.

During Duterte's 2016 presidential campaign, Quiboloy warned in media interviews that any electoral fraud against Duterte would trigger a revolution that he would personally lead.

Duterte was also entrusted with key positions within Quiboloy's religious organization. In March 2024, the former president was appointed administrator of KOJC's properties.

In this capacity, Duterte threatened legal action against police authorities who raided KOJC properties in 2024 as part of operations to serve an arrest warrant against Quiboloy.

Quiboloy also extended his political support to Vice President Sara Duterte, whom he endorsed in the 2022 national elections alongside her running mate, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.

In 2019, he also endorsed Imee Marcos in her senatorial bid.

US indictment

In 2021, US prosecutors indicted Quiboloy on sex trafficking charges, alleging that he, along with church officials and two US-based administrators, operated a scheme that coerced girls and young women into sexual relations with him.

"Quiboloy was indicted by a federal grand jury in the United States District Court for the Central District of California, Santa Ana, California, for conspiracy to engage in sex trafficking by force, fraud and coercion and sex trafficking of children; sex trafficking by force, fraud and coercion; conspiracy; and bulk cash smuggling," the FBI said.

The US court issued an arrest warrant for Quiboloy on November 10, 2021.

In 2020, Quiboloy's lawyer, Israelito Torreon, maintained that the religious leader was innocent of the trafficking allegations following a raid on the group's office in the United States.

Earlier that same year, the Davao City Prosecutor's Office dismissed complaints of rape, child abuse, and human trafficking filed against Quiboloy and five other KOJC members, citing insufficient evidence.

In 2022, the FBI released wanted posters for Quiboloy and two other KOJC members, Teresita Tolibas Dandan and Helen Panilag.

By 2024, the Davao-based preacher faced additional legal troubles in the Philippines following a five-month manhunt triggered by a court-issued arrest warrant over child abuse allegations.

He was eventually arrested in September 2024 on charges of violating Republic Act 7610, or the Special Protection of Children Against Abuse, Exploitation, and Discrimination Act.

He also faces a non-bailable qualified human trafficking charge under Section 4(a) of Republic Act 9208, as amended. – with information from GMA News Research