A pastor residing in Florida's most notorious retirement community has been arrested on bigamy charges after updating his social media status to 'married' and sharing a photo of his new wife. Leslie Williams, 62, was taken into custody at his home in The Villages on Wednesday and booked into the county jail without bond, according to the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office.
The responding officer arrived at Williams' home on Lady Lake around 3:40 p.m. to serve an out-of-state warrant. Since Williams was not home at the time, deputies left but later spotted his blue Ford pickup truck in the area and initiated a traffic stop, according to the arrest warrant. He is listed as an 'out of state fugitive' and was arrested on charges from Rockdale, Georgia. The arrest warrant states that he will be extradited. The Daily Mail has reached out to the Rockdale County Sheriff's Office for details on the warrant and a timeline for extradition.
Williams shared on Facebook in December that he had married a woman named Cindy, who does not appear to have a social media account. One comment on the post read, 'Wow I thought you were already married. Congratulations!!' Another added, 'Love is in the air! Mr. & Mrs. Williams!' A few days later, he shared a photo of his bride and wrote: 'Thanks for all the wonderful comments referencing my saved, beautiful and talented wife, Mrs. Williams! She’s saved for real, praise God!!!' That same week, he shared a selfie while driving and responded to a comment praising him for looking 'like a different man.' He replied, 'I am, my wife is an amazing woman, I feel the way I look! Thank you Sis!!!'
Williams operates Leslie Williams Ministries, which advertises services preparing people for the end of time. The ministry's mission statement reads: 'At Leslie Williams Ministries, our mission is to spread the message of hope and love through faith in Jesus Christ and prepare as many as we can for the end of time! We believe in empowering individuals as disciples to strengthen their relationship with God, each other and with new disciple recruits.' The ministry's address is listed as a shopping center that appears to be owned by Safe Ship. Leslie Williams Ministries did not answer a phone call from the Daily Mail on Friday when contacted for comment.
According to jail records, Williams remains in custody. He is a resident of The Villages, an unincorporated community in Florida with a large retiree population. The community is larger than Manhattan and encompasses five zip codes. A 2021 documentary called Some Kind of Heaven, directed by Lance Oppenheim, explored the bizarre utopia where residents reportedly engage in swinging and there is a black market for Viagra. In 2023, a TikTok video went viral showing loofahs hanging outside cars, which some speculated were codes for swinging. The video also included a chart previously shared on Reddit explaining the meanings of different colored loofahs. A restaurant worker told the Daily Mail in 2014 that they were once paid $100 for three hours of work at a swingers party in The Villages.
