Two detained after sham marriage in Cardiff

The Nigerian would-be bride and a Nigerian witness to the ceremony face deportation

Immigration officers say they halted a fake marriage ceremony in Cardiff moments before it was due to begin.

The UK Border Agency says two Nigerian nationals are facing deportation after the intervention at St John's Church in the Canton area on Thursday.

The Nigerian bride-to-be, 52, was taken to Cardiff Bay police station in her wedding dress, and remains in detention, with a Nigerian witness.

The Portuguese groom, 50, has since been released with a warning.

UK Border Agency officials said they arrived at the ceremony following a tip-off, and the sham marriage was exposed when the pair were questioned.

They said the groom was unable to provide any personal details about the woman he was marrying, including her surname.

The agency said it believed the bride was a failed asylum seeker, who had already had a claim turned down, but refused to leave the country.

Officers are trying to establish her identity, but said documents she provided to the church ahead of the ceremony were fake.

Checks showed the Nigerian man, 51, who was acting as a witness to the wedding, was also a failed asylum seeker.

The agency said both will be deported over the coming weeks.

The church has been praised for its co-operation throughout the investigation.

Abigail Corbett, who heads the UK Border Agency's local immigration team for Cardiff and south east Wales, said: "We take this kind of abuse of the system very seriously, and we are working closely with churches and registrars to identify suspect sham marriages.

Specialist teams

"Where there is evidence to suggest a wedding is not genuine we will investigate and, where necessary, intervene to stop it happening.

"We have specialist teams of immigration officers working to investigate cases like this to ensure people are not able to avoid UK immigration laws."

Sham marriages usually involve a non-European marrying someone from the European Economic Area in a bid to secure long-term residency, the right to work and the right to claim benefits in the UK.

But the Border Agency warns a marriage certificate does not secure these rights and couples still have to prove their relationship is genuine.

Immigration Minister Damian Green said: "The UK Border Agency last year carried out two major enforcement campaigns to crack down on immigration crime, detaining, prosecuting and removing people and gangs who have been abusing the system through sham marriages, illegal working, people smuggling and document fraud.

"Illegal immigration puts huge pressure on the public purse at a time when the country can least afford it.

"Together with the police and the Serious Organised Crime Agency we will continue to make life as difficult as possible for those who cheat the immigration system."

Anyone with information on immigration offenders can contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 or visit the Home Office website.