Leaders of Kingdom of God Global Church arrested; JMMI property raided in Houston

HOUSTON - Two leaders of Kingdom of God Global Church were arrested Wednesday for their alleged roles in a forced labor and money-laundering conspiracy across multiple states, including Texas, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

The JMMI Global "Campus for Harvest", a property owned by Kingdom of God Global Church, was raided early Wednesday morning in Houston.

Kingdom of God Global Church leaders arrested

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According to the DOJ, David Taylor, 53, was arrested in North Carolina, and Michelle Brannon, 56, was arrested in Florida.

The indictment charges them with conspiracy to commit forced labor, forced labor and money laundering conspiracy.

According to the DOJ, Taylor and Brannon are the leaders of Kingdom of God Global Church, formerly known as Joshua Media Ministries International (JMMI).

Allegations of forced labor, money laundering

The allegations:

Taylor reportedly operated call centers in Michigan, Florida, Texas and Missouri to solicit donations for KOGGC/JMMI. The DOJ says they received millions of dollars every year through the call centers.

Taylor and Brannon are accused of compelling their victims to work at the call centers and work as Taylor’s "armor bearers," his personal servants.

According to the DOJ, the victims’ lives were controlled by Taylor and Brannon; They slept in the call center facility or in a ministry house, and they were not allowed to leave without permission.

Taylor allegedly had his armor bearers transport women from ministry houses, airports, and other locations to Taylor’s location and ensure the women took Plan B emergency contraceptives.

"In addition, according to the indictment, Taylor and Brannon required victims to work in the call centers long hours without pay or perform other services for Taylor. Taylor set unobtainable daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly monetary donation goals for victims working in the call centers and required victims to follow the orders he created without question. If victims disobeyed an order or failed to reach his monetary goals, Taylor and Brannon punished the victims with public humiliation, additional work, food and shelter restrictions, psychological abuse, forced repentance, sleep deprivation, physical assaults, and threats of divine judgment in the form of sickness, accidents, and eternal damnation," the DOJ wrote in a news release.

The 23-page indictment shows disturbing text messages from Taylor, including one from March 2022 when he allegedly sent this text to a group chat saying "Point blank…if you don’t work, you can’t eat.

According to the allegations, Taylor and Brannon used much of the money to buy luxury properties, luxury vehicles and sporting equipment like a boat, jet skis and ATVs. The DOJ says Taylor has received around $50 million in donations since 2014.

JMMI Global Campus for Harvest raided in Houston

FOX 26 was on the scene of an FBI search warrant execution at the JMMI Global Campus for Harvest in the 14000 block of North Freeway in Houston early Wednesday morning. According to property records, the property has been owned by Kingdom of God Global Church since 2023.

The JMMI website states the building would be used as a Bible school, campus, and housing center for missionaries and students.

At the scene, officers could be heard on a loudspeaker announcing the FBI had a search warrant for the location and for anyone inside to come out.

Several men and women were escorted out by officers, some handcuffed. According to sources, 17 individuals, nine men and eight women, were removed from the building.

Local SWAT teams and Harris County Sheriff’s Deputies were also at the scene.

What they're saying:

FBI Houston gave this statement:

The FBI is present at the 14300 block of the North Freeway in Houston, TX, conducting court-authorized law enforcement activity. Due to it being an active scene and an open investigation, no other information will be publicly released at this time.

Suspicious "cult-like" behavior

A man who works next door told FOX 26 he noticed unusual behavior at the campus long before the raid.

"I was here when they started moving into the building. It was just U-Haul trucks coming in, but I never saw anyone get out or leave," said Vincent Escobedo, who works nearby.

Escobedo also recalled seeing people assigned to do lawn work in ways that didn’t make sense.

"It was definitely odd. There would be just one guy with a push mower trying to mow this huge field — and it was never the same person. It was always someone different," he said.

He described the activity as "cult-like activities," saying people appeared trapped inside.

"They were guided everywhere, couldn’t talk to anyone, and even had to be escorted to the restroom. It was just weird stuff," Escobedo explained.

Tampa Bay raid

Another large investigation is being reported by FOX 13, our sister station in Tampa Bay, are also following a large investigation happening at a home in Hillsborough County's exclusive Avila neighborhood.

Law enforcement arrived at the scene located at 706 Guisando De Avila, which is owned by the Kingdom of God Global Church, according to property records.

Crime and Public SafetyHouston