JAY Rence Quilario, leader of suspected doomsday cult Socorro Bayanihan Services, Inc. (SBSI) in Surigao del Norte, has been formally indicted along with several other group officers and followers before the Surigao del Norte Regional Trial Court.
They are now facing charges for qualified trafficking in persons, facilitation of child marriage, solemnization of child marriage, and child abuse.
The allegations against SBSI, made by Senator Risa Hontiveros, are deeply troubling, accusing the cult of sexually abusing and coercing over 1,000 children in Socorro town over the years.
Drawing attention to the Socorro Task Force-Kapihan, created by the town’s mayor, Hontiveros highlighted that SBSI exhibited characteristics of a religious cult, with Quilario or “Senior Agila” as its “Messiah” and leader.
Disturbingly, direct testimonies alleged that Quilario engaged in acts of sexual abuse and violence against minors.
These heinous acts included instructing girl-children to sleep with him, facilitating child marriages involving minors as young as twelve years old with adults, and confining adolescents in rooms for the purpose of engaging in sexual activities.
Additionally, both minor and adult members were reportedly subjected to forced labor under the threat of physical punishment.
They were also compelled to surrender a significant portion, ranging from 40% to 60%, of their social welfare benefits, such as 4Ps and senior citizen pensions, to Quilario.
The DoJ’s decision to intervene in these cases underscores the gravity of the allegations against SBSI, and it sets the stage for a more comprehensive investigation into these deeply disturbing matters.
