Electrician Slashed Own Wires And Threw Cutters At Homeowner During Bitter Money Row

Money: Victor Hawes

An electrician destroyed his own wiring during an angry money row with a customer – throwing the cutters at the homeowner as he left.

Victor Hawes, 48, of St. Albans Road, Kingston-upon-Thames said: “You either pay me or I start cutting wires.”

He walked into Madhur Hemnani's house in Villiers Avenue, Surbiton on September 15, last year, insisting he was owed £400 for work on the property.

The victim says Hawes deliberately cut through ten wires, which has cost him £1500 to replace.

The six-foot seven electrician was convicted at Wimbledon Magistrates Court of criminal damage and assaulting Mr. Hemnani.

The court heard they agreed a £2,000 fee for five days work, which Hawes increased to £2,500 for extra time he said was necessary.

Mr. Hemnani paid £1400 cash and was unsatisfied by what he saw.

“None of the wires or circuits were attached to the fuse board and the work was not finished when this incident happened,” he told the court.

Dispute: Madhur Hemnani

“He walked in the side door and said: 'I'm here to collect my four hundred pounds.'

“He was looking slightly agitated and said he was not interested in a discussion.

“I told him that what he was asking was more than was agreed.

“He was quite agitated and seemed quite angry and was pointing at me in a threatening manner.

“Being confronted by someone substantially bigger felt quite threatening. You are fearful for your property as well as yourself.

“He said: 'I'm going to start cutting wires' and barged into the kitchen, went to a tool box and picked-up the wire cutters.

“He cut the first wire and said: 'Do you think I'm joking. Do you think I'm kidding?'

“He cut six wires and threw the tool on the floor and using profane language, cursing me, walked out of the property. I was quite shocked.

“He returned and picked-up the wire cutters again and said: 'I'm not done yet' and cut four more wires this time.

Row: Villiers Ave House

“He said: That's ten wires and that should cost you more than the four hundred pounds I was asking for' and in a fit of rage flung the tool towards me.

“It flew towards my arm and grazed past me. I had a small scratch on my left elbow.”

Hawes claims he is still owed nearly £1,000 by Mr. Hemnani and only cut five wires and never threw the cutters, but simply dropped them to the floor. 

Phone Ban For Schoolgirl Bus Pervert

Dirty Mac Brigade: Phillips

An octogenarian pervert, who spent the summer using his mobile to film up young schoolgirls skirts as he rode the bus, has been banned from having a phone or anything that can record images when he’s out in public.

David Phillips, 80, said his age excluded sexual gratification despite thousands of images of young girls, including upskirt clips being on his mobile phone.

“I’m eighty so there’s nothing that sexual going on. Do you know what I mean?” he told police when they raided his home.

Phillips, of St. Mary’s Court, Stamford Brook Road, Hammersmith pleaded guilty to outraging public decency on or before August 9, last year by taking indecent images of schoolgirls.

He also admitted making an indecent image of a child on or before the same date.

Phillips was sentenced to ten weeks imprisonment, suspended for two years, and must obey probation service-ordered activity rehabilitation of up to sixty days.

He was also made subject to a five-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order, which prohibits him having a recording device in public and must sign the sex offenders register for the same period.

His phone, which was seized by the police, is forfeited and he must pay a £115 victim surcharge and £85 costs.

Prosecutor Miss Carly Loftus told Hammersmith Magistrates Court: “Between May and July there were a number of reports made to police of a male filming schoolgirls on Chiswick buses.”

Phillips rode the 237 and 267 bus routes, commonly also used by schoolgirls and was often seen using a “discreet” small black mobile phone.

Transport for London and the police investigated and identified Phillips as a possible suspect because his appearance matched the description given by the girls and he had a similar previous conviction.

In 2010 he was placed on probation for filming up females’ skirts on a moving escalator.

On August 9 his home was raided by police officers, but he was not in.

“They saw him stood at a bus stop adjacent to the property with a black Samsung mobile phone in his hand.”

Phillips immediately admitted taking pictures of schoolgirls, explaining: “I just have them on my phone.”

When asked why he did it, he said: “I don’t know. Because I can I suppose.”

Miss Loftus added: “The video files were predominantly schoolgirl upstart shots and some of schoolgirls in provocative poses.”

The police split the images into two categories, which totalled 102 and 4,461 video clips of schoolgirls.

Grandmother's Bank Account Raided Of £10K By Druggie Grandson

Sentencing: Isleworth Crown Court

A drug-user, who raided his kindly grandmother's bank account of £10,000 when she helped him out, has received a suspended prison sentence.

Daniel Soper, 34, of Berryscroft Road, Staines-upon-Thames, Surrey persuaded her to hand over her bank card and PIN to buy a few essential items.

He pleaded guilty to fraud by false reprsentation between March 14 and June 1, last year, namely using his grandmother's bank card for unauthorised transactions to make a gain of £10,106.66.

Magistrates committed the case for sentencing at Isleworth Crown Court due to its seriousness and their limited sentencing powers.

This week Soper was sentenced to eighteen months imprisonment, suspended for two years, and ordered to complete 180 hours community service work.

The court made a £1,800 compensation order with Soper promising to repay the balance.

Morrisons Supermarket Boss Denies Rape And Sexual Assault Of Two Female Workers

A Morrisons supermarket assistant manager twice raped a female staff member in his office and molested a checkout girl, a court heard.

Yogesh Parmar, 38, invented reasons for the women to see him in the store’s office, where he closed the door behind them and pounced, the jury were told.

Parmar, of Glenavon Gardens, Slough has pleaded not guilty to two counts of raping the cash administrator at Morrisons, 113 Shepherd’s Bush Green in May and June, 2015. 

He also denies sexually assaulting the till operator the year before on November 1, 2014.

The rape complainant sadly died of cancer last year and the second woman no longer works at that particular store.

Prosecutor Mr. Richard Burrington told Isleworth Crown Court: “He abused his position and took sexual advantage of two members of staff.

“The cash administrator asked the defendant to sign some paperwork and he asked her to come into his office and closed the door.

“He said he forgot how to perform a task on his computer and after she assisted and was leaving he stopped her and asked her to shut the door and come back.

“She did not want to and was right to be wary because this defendant unzipped his trousers and forced her down by the shoulders.”

The jury were told the woman was then raped by Parmar.

“When the ordeal was over she took herself to the toilets and says she felt horrible, but felt she could not talk to anyone.”

The following month Parmar complained she took too long a lunch break, explained Mr. Burrington.

“The defendant used this dispute to instruct her to come to the office.

“He told her he was going to punish her and what happened the month before was repeated.

“She was somewhat shellshocked and was worried people might not believe her.”

Eventually she reported Parmar to her manager and the police, who examined a similar complaint he was cleared of by bosses in 2014.

“This defendant was excessively tactile on many occasions and on this instance the till operator was invited into his office at 10pm.

“He closed the door and grabbed her and began molesting her, touching her all over,” said Mr. Burrington.

“He lifted her off her feet and tried forcefully to kiss her while gnashing his teeth.

“He put his hand over her shirt and pushed it down over her bra. She told him to stop, but was ignored.”

Parma was arrested and questioned, suggesting the women’s motivations to report him were questionable.

“He denied all the allegations and said the rape complainant was performing poorly and he had a stern word with her.

“It amounted to a verbal warning and he told her she would be subject to disciplinary proceedings and put on some sort of programme.

“He said it was the till operator that was always tactile and flirtatious with him.

“He said that night she touched his shoulder, pinched his cheek and asked for a lift home.

“Mr. Parmar suggested she fabricated her account because he refused to give her a lift home.”

Trial continues……………. 

UK's 'Mr Parking' Caught Filming Up Commuter's Skirt At Railway Station

Troy Arriving At Court 

The CEO of the British Parking Association has quit in disgrace after he was caught filming up a female commuter’s skirt - ending ten months of prowling trains to make such recordings.

Patrick Troy, 56, of Westfield Road, Cheam desperately fiddled with his phone in a bid to delete the recording after he was caught.

He pleaded guilty to committing an act outraging public decency at Vauxhall Station, Lambeth on June 8, last year, namely filming up the skirt of an unknown female.

Today, at Westminster Magistrates Court he was sentenced to eighteen weeks imprisonment, suspended for two years, and banned from taking images on public transport.

He filmed up women’s skirts while commuting into London from his four-bedroom £600,000 home and says getting caught is a “watershed” moment.

The BPA announced on February 22 that Troy had resigned after eight years as CEO with immediate effect for “personal reasons”.

Two weeks later he pleaded guilty and today was also made subject to an indefinite Sexual Harm Prevention Order, (SHPO) prohibiting him taking pictures on public transport.

“The defendant was witnessed recording up an unknown female’s skirt as she walked to platform eight at Vauxhall Railway Station,” explained prosecutor Mr. Malachy Pakenham.

“The defendant was seen holding his phone at an angle below her skirt and the witness saw the red recording light on and a clear image of the skirt and back of the woman’s legs.

“The witness challenged him at platform eight and followed him onto the train where he was seen with his hand in his right pocket fidgeting with something.

“It is thought he was trying to get his phone out to delete the image.

“The police were called and when the train stopped at Clapham Junction he was arrested.

“A number of other images were found on the phone.

“He was interviewed on two occasions and was quite frank and apologetic for his actions, saying he regretted his actions, which disgusted him.

“He said every time he did it, film up skirts, he hated it and saw his arrest as a watershed moment.

Tense: Sentencing Day Has Arrived

“He said it was not a hobby, but when the opportunity presented itself he was tempted as he travelled to and from work. and there were other images.”

Troy tried to explain himself to police: “Sometimes I wonder, I suppose it’s for sexual gratification, I don’t know, that must be the conclusion.”

The court heard he had never been arrested before, but the British Transport Police still applied for the SHPO, which initially included a ban on sitting opposite unknown females, but this condition was dropped.

Troy’s lawyer Mr. Michael Sprack, referring to the probation report, said: “It’s insightful and I endorse the recommendations made possible by my client’s frank admission.

“Firstly he is a man with no previous convictions, a man in his fifties and that weighs heavily.

“Secondly remorse, beyond the guilty plea he made frank admissions in interview and was concerned that the police had as much information as they could.

“There are two letters from a counselling service that my client approached under own initiative.”

Magistrate Mr. John Newgas told Troy: “We’ve read the pre-sentence report, which we find clear and are in agreement with.

“The offence has gone on for a period of ten months and had a range of victims and has reached the custody threshold.”

They reduced the sentence from 24 weeks to 18 weeks due to the guilty plea.

Troy must also comply with a thirty-five day designated activity requirement and up to 100 days on a programme chosen by the probation service.

“This offence is so serious custody is the only option, due to harm and risk,” added Mr. Newgas.

“A suspended sentence is serious. If you commit an offence within twenty-four months the sentence could be reactivated.

“You are on a warning and quite lucky to not be in prison.”   

BPA largest professional association in Europe, representing 700 organisations in the parking and traffic management community

Troy’s background is working with local authorities, regarding parking.

He must also pay £85 costs and a £115 victim surcharge.

Pensioner Gets Restraining Order For Pestering Local Woman

Osborne Road, Enfield

An octogenarian has been slapped with a restraining order to prevent him talking to a local woman he left notes pinned to a tree for.

Peter Frank Crossman, 84, has been banned from communicating with the lady for twelve months.

He has been conditionally discharged for a year and ordered to pay £85 costs and a £20 victim surcharge.

Crossman, of Osborne Road, Enfield, pleaded guilty to harassing Carla Morgan in his road on September 28, last year.

Highbury Corner Magistrates Court heard he attempted to speak to her on numerous occasions and left notes pinned to a tree near where she parked her car.

The court decided to pass a lenient sentence due to Crossman's age and his previous good character.

Ex-Public Schoolboy Flouts Court Date For Booze Bender

The ex-public schoolboy son of a retired solicitor had a warrant for his arrest issued on Wednesday after failing to appear in court on a charge of forging a prescription.

Piers Robert Fairweather Edmondson, 34, of Crabbett Wood, Itchingwood Common Road, Oxted had been at a rehab centre in rural Scotland.

Wimbledon Magistrates Court heard he travelled early for his court date, but suffered an alcohol relapse.

District Judge James Henderson dismissed a suggestion from Edmondson's lawyer that he could possibly be conveyed to court by ambulance

He is charged with one count of fraud by false representation on November 21, last year at Boots, St. John’s Hill, Battersea, namely using a false prescription.

He is also charged with possession or control of an article for use in fraud, namely a false prescription.

It is understood the prescription was a genuine one made out to Edmondson, who is accused of altering the amount to increase the medication he would receive.

His parents live in a six-bedroom £2.75m home and have a restraining order, which prevents him contacting his mother or father or going within 650 feet of their home.

Edmondson is a talented classical guitarist, who has performed at the Savoy on London’s Strand.

His father, James Fairweather Edmondson, a retired solicitor specialising in trusts and wills is head of the Halecat Charitable Trust, based in Salisbury, Wiltshire.

Piers attended £35,000-a year The King’s School, Canterbury, whose alumni include Field-Marshal Bernard Montgomery; actor Orlando Bloom; former England cricket captain David Gower and TV chef Antony Worrall Thompson. 

Drug Addict Son Of Sir John Fretwell & Lady Fretwell Stole Mother's Credit Card To Fund £10K Drug Binge

Benjamin Fretwell, sister Isobel and Lady Mary Fretwell

The Alpine ski instructor son of Lady Mary Fretwell used her stolen credit card to withdraw nearly £10,000 to support his £300-a day crack and heroin addiction.

Benjamin Fretwell, 50, has been battling a decade-long habit with the assistance of his mother and father - retired diplomat Sir John Emsley Fretwell.

He was staying with his mother at his parents’ £2.5m Kensington apartment in Queens Gate when he secretly stole the card.

Fretwell pleaded guilty to stealing the card on December 17, last year and fraud by false representation between December 22 and January 30, namely making cash withdrawals of £9,484.93.

Lady Fretwell OBE and her daughter attended Hammersmith Magistrates Court to support Benjamin, but there was no sign of Sir John - British Ambassador to France between 1982 and 1987.

This week Fretwell received eight weeks imprisonment, suspended for twelve months, and was ordered to complete 200 hours community service work. 

Prosecutor Mr. Robert Simpson said: “The charges date back to December, last year and January, this year. The complainant is the defendant’s mother.

“He was staying at her address for a period of time and his mother only realised her card had been used when she received her credit card statement.”

Fretwell: £10K Drugs Binge

Fretwell is currently six weeks into a two-month drug rehab programme financed by his parents at the private Sanctuary Lodge, Halstead, Essex.

“This was an opportunistic act by a man in the grip of an addiction to drugs,” said Mr. Duncan Jones, defending. “He pleaded guilty at the first opportunity and realises he is in a precarious position today.

“He made a full admission to the police and for him it was a relief to be arrested and that put a stop to his offending.

“By his actions he has let down his mother and father, who over the years have supported him.

“He is addicted to crack cocaine and heroin and has been for the last ten years and there was an overwhelming temptation when he saw his mother’s bank card.

“His addiction consumed his thoughts and actions and he descended into a three hundred pounds-a day drug addiction.

“It was his worst ever relapse and he could not control it while these cards, for those weeks, were usable.

“In the past he has controlled his drug addiction and during the winter he is usually working in the Alps as a ski instructor and then goes to France and Spain to look after his family’s houses.

“There, he doesn’t take drugs. The problems are when he is here, in London under bad influences.

“In her statement his mother said she phoned the police to get help for her son, not to see him prosecuted or sent to prison.

“His therapist says Mr. Fretwell is looking at his run of destructive patterns.

“The desire of the family is that Mr. Fretwell is allowed to continue that privately-funded therapy and not be a drain on public funds.

“He is at low-risk of reoffending and the probation service say he does not need rehabilitation from them.

“His intention is to sell his flat in Pimlico and use the proceeds to repay his mother. It is worth a substantial sum and is on the market.

“His mother has Power of Attorney over the flat and his bank accounts as a result of previous problems.

Card Nicked From Lady Fretwell's Home

“He has shown, notwithstanding his addiction, he can be a productive member of society.

“He is clearly talented in his role of a ski instructor and that occupation keeps him clean for the majority of the year.

“Because of this drug binge he went on he did not go to work this season and his mother told his employers he was unwell.

“Next year he intends to continue with his ski instruction and is at Level Two. 

“These are high-level qualifications and he teaches children and those with special needs to more advanced skiers and has a lot to offer, despite this drug addiction.

“This was an opportunistic offence and he had no prospect of getting away with it and knew his mother would put a stop to the card.

“I ask for a sentence to be passed that will allow him to continue to repair his relationship with his parents.

“After rehab he will be looked after by his family, the best place for him.”

Fretwell was also ordered to pay £85 costs and a £115 victim surcharge and told the court: “My mother will pay that and I’ll pay her back.”

Lady Fretwell, founder of the Passport for Pets pressure group, which campaigns for an alternative to our quarantine laws, said from the public gallery: “It will come out of the flat cash, I’ve got a book.”

Magistrate Mr. Robert Westlake told Fretwell: “This is a case aggravated by the amount involved.

“If you are convicted of an offence in the next twelve months it’s highly likely you will go to prison these eight weeks. 

“Your mother wants to help you and we are really pleased you are doing something to help yourself at Sanctuary Lodge.

“It’s hanging over your head. That’s why we are doing it and it will be disastrous for you if you are back.”

Schoolgirl Stalker Spied On Teenager From Car

A creepy stalker was caught after his 14 year-old girl victim woke from a nightmare and told her mother about him staring at her from his car as she walked to school.

Palbin Gurung, 31, spent months parking his vehicle on her Twickenham route, driving from junction to junction to get ahead of her and watch as she passed by.

Gurung, of Harlington Road East, Feltham pleaded guilty to stalking, which involved serious harm or distress, between June 1 and November 30, last year.

This week at Wimbledon Magistrates Court he received 18 weeks imprisonment, suspended for 18 months and was ordered to complete 100 hours community service.

He must also pay the victim £200 compensation and was ordered to pay £85 costs and a £115 victim surcharge.

Prosecutor Miss Mary Atere told the court: “This relates to the stalking of the victim, who was fourteen years-old at the time.

“She says she noticed the defendant following her in his car on her normal route to and from school.

“She was wearing school uniform and it was obvious she was of school age.

“The defendant would drive up to the next junction and park his vehicle and constantly stare and follow her with his eyes.

“He did not get out of the vehicle and he would smile at her on some occasions.

“She changed her route to school to avoid certain roads and there were times she did not want to go to school or leave the house.

“It only came to light when she had a nightmare about the defendant and woke at 2am and told her mother.

“Her step-father then followed her to school and took the vehicle’s registration number.”

This helped police trace and arrest Gurung, who told them: “I admit I have been waiting along the route. I have no intention of scaring her or her family or doing it again.”

Miss Atere added: “He ignores the obvious distress to the victim and the fact she changes her normal route.

“He has frightened her and has had an impact on her. She has had nightmares about this defendant.”

Gurung, who has lost his job at Heathrow Airport as a result of his first conviction, told the probation service he was going through a difficult time last year.

He felt the schoolgirl, who he first spotted by chance, represented the only pleasant thing in his life.

Gurung must also complete a probation service-ordered rehabilitation activity requirement of up to forty days and a restraining order was made prohibiting him going to the girl’s school or within 500 metres of her family’s home.

Jemima Goldsmith Stalker Bombarded Her With Tweets And Sent Taxi For Date

O'Mahoney leaving court

An obsessed stalker, who bombarded journalist and millionaire’s daughter Jemima Goldsmith with tweets and sent a mini-cab to her door for a date, has been sentenced.

Conor Donal O’Mahoney, 60, of Pittock House, Freemens Way, Deal, Kent, was placed on a year’s probation by Hammersmith Magistrates Court.

He pleaded guilty to one count of harassing Jemima - identified in the charge as Mrs Khan - on September 27, last year and is now banned from contacting her and going within 200m of her Chelsea home or visiting her Marylebone office.

“That taxi arrived with the intention of taking her to a restaurant and must have made Mrs Khan extremely concerned about you, someone who keeps persistently tweeting her and wondering what would come next,” Deputy District Judge Adrian Turner told him.

“That’s the harm this offence causes. She had no way of knowing about your problems that lay behind the behaviour.

“The tweeting has stopped, you are receiving treatment and I hope this has allayed her fears and concerns.”

He had an adverse effect on the 42 year-old mother-of-two’s usual day-today activities by contacting her on social media and sending the Addison Lee taxi to her home address.

He sent the cab so she could meet him at a restaurant and hand-delivered letters to her home and tried to talk to her over the intercom.

O’Mahoney also bombarded Jemima and her friends with Twitter and Instagram messages.

In 2015 he was cautioned by the police for tweeting her five times a day and approaching her outside a hotel and asking her out to dinner.

His bipolar disorder was diagnosed in 1999, but worsened by five years of skin cancer treatment and extensive dental surgery.

Prosecutor Miss Kerry McNulty told the court today: “Mr. O’Mahoney ordered an Addison Lee taxi to her home address, which was given instructions to drive her to a restaurant in central London.

“He sent her messages via twitter to meet him at this restaurant.

“She was particularly concerned he ordered a taxi to her address because it shows he knew where she lives.”

DDJ Turner added: “This is one of the most comprehensive pre-sentence reports I’ve ever read. It runs into twelve pages.

“You have been diagnosed and it is a condition you’ve had for a very long time. It has not resulted in violence.

“There is little risk of this ever turning into something more menacing or risk of physical harm, but she was not to know.

“All she knew was you were tweeting obsessively and sending the taxi.”

The probation order includes a mental health treatment requirement 

and thirty-day activity requirement and O’Mahoney must also pay £85 costs and an £85 victim surcharge.

If jobless O’Mahoney, who lives on benefits, breaches the restraining order he faces a maximum of five years imprisonment.

Westminster-born Jemima was married to Pakistani cricket legend Imran Khan between 1995 and 2004 and is identified in the charge under her married name.

Her parents are millionaire financier Sir James Goldsmith and Lady Annabel Goldsmith.

Her brother, Conservative politician Zac Goldsmith, 42, recently lost his Richmond Park seat and failed in a bid to become Mayor of London.

Jailed: Mother & Daughter Ringleaders Of £315K Lithuanian Brides Sham Marriage Plot

Jailed: Lina Kezelyte & Valentina Kezeliene

The mother and daughter ringleaders of a gang of Lithuanian women, who organised sham marriages so foreign men could remain in the UK, have been jailed. 

They flew in brides from the Baltic state to marry Pakistani, Sri Lankan, Nigerian and Nepalese men in a £315,000 visa plot.

A total of twenty-six bogus marriages were identified in which young Lithuanian women were booked on flights with budget airline Wizz Air and flown to Luton Airport from Vilnius.

Sometimes the marriage ceremony at a London-area registry office would take place the following day, with the bride returning home alone shortly after.

The grooms were often illegal overstayers, who had exhausted every legal means to remain and should have returned to their home countries.

Lina Kezelyte, 32, of  Warmwell Avenue, Colindale received four-and-a-half years imprisonment and her mother Valentina Kezeliene, 53, two-and-a-half years.

Beata Jarmolovic, 28, of Park Barn Drive, Guildford was sentenced to eighteen months imprisonment, suspended for eighteen months and ordered to complete 200 hours community service.

Ruta Sperskaite, 25, of Vanderville Gardens, East Finchley received two years imprisonment, suspended for two years and was ordered to complete 200 hours community service work.

All four were convicted of conspiring together between February 1, 2012 and August 28, 2014 to assist unlawful immigration by arranging the marriages and assisting the grooms.

Suspended Sentences: Jarmolovic & Sperskaite

Renata Semasko, 29, of The Oaks, Aldershot Road, Guildford was convicted of helping launder the criminal proceeds and was sentenced to eighteen months imprisonment, suspended for eighteen months and ordered to complete 200 hours community service.

A sixth absent defendant, Mohemmed Jemaldeen, 33, of Turner Road, Edgware, who providing the grooms, received four years for conspiracy to assist unlawful immigration.

Prosecutor Mr. Jonathan Polnay told Croydon Crown Court that as members of the EU spouses of Lithuanian nationals have the right to permanently live and work in the UK.

“This case is about the subversion of that right for profit, to the detriment of those that play by the rules, by arranging sham marriages to fool the authorities into allowing the grooms to remain in the UK.

“This conspiracy was to help non-EU national men to live and work in the UK via a sham marriage.

“They managed, in some cases, to fool the Home Office and other public bodies the marriages were genuine.”

Even when a visa application was rightly denied, the jury heard appeals to the Home Office were successful, with the grooms being allowed to stay as a legal spouse.

“These six defendants were involved in arranging these marriages, setting them up and running the show.

Money Launderer: Semasko

“Many of the grooms were desperate. They had already tried and failed to stay in the UK.”

The bogus brides were paid a fee and shown how to apply for a National Insurance number as soon as they arrived, which proved they were exercising their EU treaty rights.

The jury were told Lina Kezelyte was the “ringleader” who recruited most of the brides and her mother booked flights and helped launder the profits.

“The other defendants assisted in moving around the money and helped out at the weddings themselves,” explained Mr. Polnay.

Ceremonies took place in registry offices from Camberley, Surrey to Enfield, north London.

Investigators discovered that during the period of the conspiracy Lina received £315,376 into her five bank accounts, with £99,496 of it in cash.

She declared to HMRC she was earning an annual salary of £36,000.

“There is cash swilling around, a lot of it.”