For years, Leslie Williams built a reputation as a shepherd of souls and a guardian of the marital bond, even penning a literary blueprint on how to love a wife with “deeper” commitment. Today, however, the 62-year-old pastor finds himself behind bars, accused by authorities of practicing a version of marriage that was perhaps a bit too inclusive.
Williams was apprehended on April 22 within the sprawling master-planned retirement corridors of The Villages. According to online records from the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office, the arrest was executed on an outstanding warrant originating from Rockdale County, Georgia. The charge: bigamy.
Because of his status as an out-of-state fugitive, Williams is currently being held without bond in a Florida jail.
The legal dominoes began to fall after investigators in Georgia conducted a forensic look at Florida’s matrimonial archives. The Rockdale County Sheriff’s Office informed Fox News Digital that those records “confirmed that Leslie Williams was still lawfully married at the time of the subsequent marriage.” That discovery provided the probable cause necessary to pivot from a domestic discrepancy to a criminal warrant.
In the state of Georgia, the stakes for such an offense are high; a bigamy conviction carries a potential prison sentence of anywhere from one to 10 years.
Williams, who identifies himself on social media as the leader of LW Ministries and a board-certified Christian counselor, has long positioned himself as an authority on the “sacred relationship” between husband and wife. In 2017, he published Love Her Like This: Loving Her Has Never Been Deeper, a guide designed to challenge men to understand the gravity of their vows.
The book’s synopsis paints a picture of a man dedicated to monogamy, claiming the text “speaks directly to the hearts of men, sharing the deep intent of the type of love a man should have for his wife.” It further promises to help couples navigate the “common issues” that possess the “potential to destroy” a marriage, specifically urging men to make “plain the meaning of commitment.”
However, the timeline of Williams’ own commitments has come under intense digital scrutiny. While his Facebook profile long indicated he had been married for many years, a shift occurred on December 9, 2025. Williams shared a post that appeared to announce a new union with a woman named Cindi.
The announcement was met with a mixture of celebration and confusion. Amid the digital confetti of congratulatory messages, one follower pointedly remarked: “Wow I thought you were already married.”
Less than a week later, on December 15, Williams doubled down on the news, posting a photo of a woman with a caption that read: “Thanks for all the wonderful comments referencing my saved, beautiful and talented wife, Mrs. Williams!”
In a stark contrast to those recent declarations of domestic bliss, Williams’ relationship status on his Facebook page has since been revised. It currently reads: Single.
While the Sumter and Rockdale County Sheriff’s Offices have been contacted for further details on the investigation, the “board-certified counselor” remains in custody, waiting to answer for the very vows he once taught others to protect.