For more than a decade, Apollo Carreon Quiboloy (Quiboloy) engaged in serious human rights abuse, including a pattern of systemic and pervasive rape of girls as young as 11 years old, as well as other physical abuse. In 1985, Quiboloy founded The Kingdom of Jesus Christ, The Name Above Every Name (KOJC) church in the Philippines. In 2021, a federal indictment alleged Quiboloy was involved in sex trafficking “pastorals” — young women within the KOJC selected to work as personal assistants for Quiboloy. Pastorals were directed to have “night duty,” which required them to have sexual intercourse with Quiboloy on a determined schedule. Quiboloy kept pastorals in various countries, including the Philippines and the United States.
Quiboloy exploited his role within the KOJC to rape his victims and subject them to other physical abuse, describing these acts as sacrifices required by the Bible and by God for the victims’ salvation. The pastorals, who were mostly minors when initially abused by Quiboloy, were told by him to “offer your body as a living sacrifice.” One female reported she lost count of the number of times she was forced to have sex with Quiboloy, as it was at least once a week even when she was a minor and in every country to which they traveled. Another woman reported she was forced to perform night duty at least 1,000 times.
Quiboloy also subjected pastorals and other KOJC members to other forms of physical abuse. Reports indicate Quiboloy personally beat victims and knew where to hit them so there would be no visible bruising. Pastorals and KOJC members who angered Quiboloy were at times sent to “Upper Six,” a walled compound used solely for punishment.
Quiboloy is designated pursuant to E.O. 13818 for being a foreign person who is responsible for or complicit in, or has directly or indirectly engaged in, serious human rights abuse. As noted above, Quiboloy was indicted in November 2021. Quiboloy is currently on the FBI’s Wanted List
On December 23, 2016, the President signed the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act (Pub. L. 114-328, Title XII, Subtitle F) (the “Act”) into law. The Act authorized the President to impose targeted sanctions on any foreign person the President determines is, among other things, responsible for extrajudicial killings, torture, or other gross violations of internationally recognized human rights, or a government official, or a senior associate of such an official, responsible for, or complicit in, ordering, controlling, or otherwise directing, acts of significant corruption.
On December 20, 2017, the President, invoking the authority of, inter alia, the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701-1706) (IEEPA), issued Executive Order 13818 (82 FR 60839, December 26, 2017) (E.O. 13818), effective at 12:01 a.m. eastern standard time on December 21, 2017.
In E.O. 13818, the President determined that serious human rights abuse and corruption around the world constitute an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security, foreign policy, and economy of the United States and declared a national emergency to deal with that threat.
OFAC is issuing the Global Magnitsky Sanctions Regulations, 31 CFR part 583 (the “Regulations”), to implement the Act and E.O. 13818, pursuant to authorities delegated to the Secretary of the Treasury in E.O. 13818. A copy of E.O. 13818 appears in appendix A to this part.
