Man jailed for organising sham marriages in Coventry

[dutchman]

A 45-year old has been jailed for three years for admitting trying to set up two sham marriages at a Coventry church.



Oscar Prata – who was born in Angola but has a Portugese passport – admitted trying to break immigration laws.

He was arrested back in 2009 along with four other people just before a sham double wedding was due to take place.

Prata himself was due to marry a Nigerian woman, Bukola Ainkanmile and had organised for his friend Carla Pavia Du Rusario to marry a Nigerian man Tunda Ayammiyi.

A man from Nigeria, Oluseyi Adelana was also there to act as a witness to both ceremonies.

Immigration officers swooped after the Reverend Valerie Woods became suspicious of the wedding arrangements.

Sam Bullimore from the UK Border Agency said: “Prata sought to undermine the UK’s immigration laws for personal proft. His only motivation was money and he treated marriage ceremonies as nothing more than financial transactions.”

“It is offenders like Prata who fuel the demand for sham marriages. By bringing him to justic we have destroyed his criminal business and shown just how seriously we and the courts take this kind of activity.”

The other four people involved in the scam have also been sentenced and Prata is now set to be deported.