Woman jailed for marriages scam

Gill made up to £1m with the scam

A woman who is thought to have made up to £1m out of a sham marriage empire has been jailed for 10 years.

Jaswinder Gill duped would-be British models to take part in "wedding photo shoots" in the UK and India which were in fact real ceremonies.

The Indian "grooms" could then try to claim British citizenship.

Gill, 42, of Hillingdon, west London, was convicted of assisting illegal entry into the UK and trying to pervert the course of justice.

Her husband Dharsham was jailed for six years after pleading guilty to two charges of conspiring to assist illegal entry into the UK.

Beauty trade

Police said the full extent of her activities was not known but more than £250,000 was channelled through one bank account and a further £77,000 was paid into another in her husband's name.

However, it is thought the pair could have earned much more from the scam.

She manipulated and exploited vulnerable people to suit her own means Acting Det Sgt Gerri Mannion Impact of sham wedding law

The court heard she told some of the young girls they would work in India as models or in the beauty trade, soliciting for business by handing out cards at London shopping centres.

One woman was flown to the subcontinent for what she thought was a photo shoot.

Elaborate set

It turned out the "elaborate set" was a proper ceremony which ended with her married to a complete stranger. She was then abandoned to find her own way home.

Another who tried to back out at the last minute was threatened with violence and warned she would be raped if she did not go through with it.

Gill also tried to arrange a wedding in Gravesend, Kent, but the "bride" was arrested after she failed to persuade the registrar that the marriage was genuine.

The court was told the women were described as "vulnerable" with at least two of them being drug addicts.

The scam was investigated by the Metropolitan Police's Operation Maxim team, which looks at organised immigration crime.

'Charade'

Acting-Det Sgt Gerri Mannion, said: "These marriages were a charade - arranged between perfect strangers who were coached by Gill to convince registrars of their intentions to live as man and wife in the UK.

"Jaswinder Gill was the driving force behind this enterprise. She manipulated and exploited vulnerable people to suit her own means."

Two other men, Fasil Rashid, 31, of Acton, west London, Ahmed Zubair, 20, of Hillingdon, west London, were jailed at Isleworth Crown Court for four years and 12 months respectively for their roles.

Akash Khanna, 22, of Heston, west London, received a 12 month prison sentence suspended for two years after admitting conspiring to assist unlawful immigration by forging bills and bank statements.