Dutch Woman Jailed For Organising Sham Marriages In The UK

23/11/2012

A woman has been sentenced at Manchester Crown Court to four years in prison for her part in arranging bogus marriages in order to help people gain illegal entry into the UK.

Diana Oliviera, a Dutch national, set up a number of marriages between Dutch nationals from the Dutch Antilles and Nigerian nationals, which allowed non-EU citizens to illegally obtain the documents needed to work and claim benefits in the UK.

She was extradited from the Netherlands and pleaded guilty to conspiracy to facilitate a breach of UK immigration law.  Prosecution evidence included documentation which proved that she had received sums of money from the Nigerian nationals taking part in the weddings and wedding photographs showing her at some of the marriages.

Fran Gough, Senior Crown Prosecutor from CPS North West Area Complex Casework Unit said:

"Diana Olivieira played a key organising role in the arrangement of sham marriages between Dutch nationals and Nigerian nationals simply for her own financial gain. 

"The CPS has worked closely with Greater Manchester Police and the Dutch authorities to ensure that she was extradited back to the UK to face the charges against her, and together with officers from UK Border Agency we have built a strong case against her which led to her pleading guilty at court.

"This prosecution and prison sentence sends out a strong message that the CPS, police and UKBA take these offences very seriously, and anyone involved in arranging these marriages in order to flout immigration laws can expect to be prosecuted robustly."