Maria De Leon sentenced for immigration fraud linked to Apollo Quiboloy's church

Maria De Leon, a 77‑year‑old resident of Los Angeles' Koreatown, was sentenced to time already served after pleading guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit immigration fraud. The court credited roughly four months she spent in custody after her 2021 arrest and ordered her to pay a $100 special assessment.

De Leon, owner of Liberty Legal Document Services, admitted she prepared and filed fraudulent immigration petitions for members of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ (KOJC), a religious organization founded by Filipino pastor Apollo Quiboloy. The filings relied on sham marriages and false family‑based petitions to help church members obtain permanent residency or citizenship in the United States. Prosecutors said the scheme also involved labor‑trafficking and the misuse of donations to the Glendale‑based Children’s Joy Foundation, which they described as a bogus charity. De Leon’s cooperation with investigators led to a reduced sentence and aided authorities in building cases against other defendants linked to the church.