Sham marriage pair jailed

A bride and groom who were arrested at their sham wedding were jailed today.

Pavel Mirga, 23, and Florence Babawale, 19, were both sentenced to eight months' imprisonment after being arrested outside a church by immigration officials.

The pair were caught in a raid at St Peter's Church in Streatham, south London, on August 7.

At a hearing last month, Mirga, a Czech national, pleaded guilty to assisting illegal immigration and making a false statement with reference to marriage, while Babawale, a Nigerian, admitted perjury and possessing false identity documents.

The marriage was set up to help Babawale stay in the country, but she had supplied the church with a passport containing a false residency stamp and had lied about her address.

Today they were jailed by Judge Mark Bishop, sitting at Inner London Crown Court.