Retirement Community Pastor Faces Arrest for Alleged Bigamy

A pastor residing in Florida’s infamous retirement enclave has found himself in legal trouble, facing bigamy charges after updating his marital status and sharing a photo with his new spouse on social media.

Leslie Williams, aged 62, was apprehended at his residence in The Villages on Wednesday. The Sumter County Sheriff’s Office confirmed he was taken into custody and held in the county jail without the option for bail.

Authorities approached Williams’ home in Lady Lake around 3:40 PM to execute an out-of-state warrant.

Finding no one home, deputies were preparing to leave when they spotted Williams’ distinctive blue Ford pickup nearby, prompting them to conduct a traffic stop as per the arrest warrant.

Labeled as an ‘out-of-state fugitive,’ Williams faces charges originating from Rockdale, Georgia, and is slated for extradition.

The Daily Mail has contacted the Rockdale County Sheriff’s Office to obtain the arrest warrant and gather more details on the extradition timeline.

Williams shared on Facebook in December that he got married to a woman named Cindy, who did not appear to have a social media account. 

‘Wow I thought you were already married. Congratulations!!’ one comment on the post read. 

Leslie Williams, pictured above in a social media post last year, was arrested in Florida earlier this week on an out-of-state warrant 

Williams has been accused of bigamy. He posted a photo of his new wife, Cindy, pictured above, on his Facebook in December 

Williams was arrested on April 22 by the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office and has been booked in jail without bond. He’s pictured above in a booking photo 

‘Love is in the air! Mr. & Mrs. Williams!’ another added.  

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 driving and responded to a comment praising him for looking ‘like a different man.’

‘I am, my wife is an amazing woman, I feel the way I look! Thank you Sis!!!’ he responded. 

Williams operates the Leslie Williams Ministries, which advertises services preparing you for the end of time.’  

‘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!’ their mission statement reads. 

‘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 in a shopping center that appears to be owned by Safe Ship. 

Williams operates Leslie Williams Ministries and is a pastor. He lives in The Villages in Florida, according to jail records. Williams is pictured above in a social media post shared in 2024 

The address listed online for Leslie Williams Ministries appears to be a Safe Ship store in an outdoor shopping center, pictured above 

Leslie Williams Ministries did not answer a phone call from the Daily Mail on Friday when contacted for comment. According to jail records, Williams is still in custody. 

Williams 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 say people participated in swinging and there was a black market for Viagra. 

In 2023, a TikTok video went viral depicting loofahs hanging outside of people’s cars, which some speculated were codes for swinging. 

The video also included a chart previously shared on Reddit of what the different colors of loofahs meant. 

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.