MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Justice on Monday filed criminal charges against Jey Rence Quilario or "Senior Agila," the leader of a religious group pretending to be a people's organization called Socorro Bayanihan Services Inc. (SBSI), in a Surigao del Norte court.
In a document released by the DOJ, Quilario is accused of qualified human trafficking, facilitation of child marriage, solemnization of child marriage and child abuse
Besides Quilario, 12 other SBSI members will also be facing charges.
“Meron na tayong 21 cases filed sa Surigao finile lahat…is just the beginning dahil marami pang angles ang tinitingnan dito,” Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said.
(We already have 21 cases filed in Surigao, all of which have been filed. This is just the beginning because there are still many angles being examined here).
“Preliminarily filed in Surigao because eventually, we believe that the cases should be tried here in Manila or another venue,” he added.
Sen. Risa Hontiveros initially brought the accusations against SBSI to light in September.
She exposed reported instances of abuse within the organization, particularly among minors, including cases of sexual abuse and coerced marriages dating back to 2019.