A 62-year-old Florida pastor who built a ministry around loving your spouse was arrested Wednesday at The Villages retirement community on an outstanding Georgia warrant charging him with bigamy, accused of marrying a new woman while still legally wed to another.

Leslie Williams, who runs Leslie Williams Ministries out of The Villages and published a 2017 book titled Love Her Like This: Loving Her Has Never Been Deeper, was taken into custody by the Sumter County Sheriff's Office. He is being held without bond at the Sumter County Detention Center as an out-of-state fugitive, with legal holds from Rockdale County, Georgia, Fox News Digital reported.

The arrest caps a trail that began when a complainant reported the alleged bigamy to the Haines City Police Department in Florida. The case was then transferred to Georgia after records showed Williams' previous marriage had been certified in Rockdale County. Georgia authorities obtained Florida marriage records, confirmed Williams was still lawfully married at the time of a subsequent marriage, and secured a warrant on April 3.

A public celebration that raised questions

Williams did not hide the new union. In a December Facebook post, he announced he had married a woman named Cindi, featuring a photo of her as his updated cover image. He thanked well-wishers openly.

The Rockdale County Sheriff's Office told Fox News Digital plainly what the records showed:

"Florida marriage records were obtained and confirmed that Leslie Williams was still lawfully married at the time of the subsequent marriage. Based on these records, a warrant was obtained for Leslie Williams for the charge of bigamy."

Williams' Facebook page had indicated he was married for years, dating back to at least 2018. When a friend commented on the December announcement, "Wow I thought you were already married. Congratulations!!", the remark now reads less like a casual aside and more like an early red flag.

Williams responded with enthusiasm. As the New York Post noted, he wrote on Facebook: "Yes preacher!!!! THE HAPPIEST MAN on earth!!"

Roughly two months after the wedding announcement, the cover photo of his new wife disappeared. It was replaced with an image of a car. His relationship status changed from "married" to "single." Then came the warrant.

The ministry and the book

Williams presented himself as a guide for husbands seeking deeper marriages. His 2017 book promised insight on "loving her" at a deeper level. His ministry website listed its location within The Villages, one of the largest retirement communities in the world, situated outside Orlando, Florida, and long the subject of rumors about its social scene.

On Facebook, Williams celebrated his latest marriage with the words: "Thanks for all the wonderful comments referencing my saved, beautiful and talented wife, Mrs. Williams!" The post projected the image of a man practicing what he preached. The Georgia warrant tells a different story.

The case adds to a growing list of clergy members facing criminal consequences for conduct that contradicts their public ministry. A Vintage Church pastor was recently removed after confessing to a years-long extramarital affair, and the pattern of leaders who demand moral standards they refuse to meet themselves erodes trust in religious institutions broadly.

Held without bond, awaiting extradition

Williams is currently being held for extradition at the Sumter County Detention Center in accordance with the warrant's stipulations. His no-bond status reflects his classification as an out-of-state fugitive with legal holds from Rockdale County.

Georgia's bigamy statute treats marrying while still legally bound to a living spouse as a criminal offense. The Rockdale County Sheriff's Office has not publicly detailed how many marriages authorities believe Williams entered into. Fox News Digital's headline referenced "multiple women," but the body of the reporting specifies at least one prior marriage and one subsequent marriage.

Several open questions remain. The full charge language, statute number, and case docket have not been made public. The identity of Williams' prior spouse has not been disclosed, and the woman identified only as Cindi has not been named in full. No court date has been announced.

Cases like these are not isolated. A Florida ex-pastor was recently convicted on twelve felony counts for abusing children, and an Ohio pastor was convicted of involuntary manslaughter after a teenager died in a church van accident. The common thread is not denomination or geography. It is the gap between the authority these men claimed and the accountability they avoided.

What the law expects

Bigamy is a straightforward charge. You are either legally married or you are not. If you are, you cannot marry someone else until the first marriage is dissolved. Florida's marriage records, Georgia authorities say, made the answer clear in Williams' case.

Williams built a brand on telling other men how to love their wives. He sold a book on it. He ran a ministry around it. He posted about it on social media for years. And now he sits in a Florida jail, held without bond, waiting to answer a Georgia charge that says he couldn't follow his own advice, or his own vows.

A man who writes the book on marriage ought to at least finish one before starting the next.