A British convicted sexual offender who organised a “mock wedding” in Disneyland Paris with a nine-year-old girl as the bride has been charged, French prosecutors have said.
The 39-year-old, who reportedly played the groom in the fake ceremony, faces several counts of fraud, abuse of trust, money laundering and identity theft after he was arrested at the entertainment resort on Saturday.
Police were called by a “guest” who later claimed he was hired to play the role of father of the bride.
In a statement, the prosecutor of the tribunal in Meaux, Jean-Baptiste Bladier, said the man “explained he was paid €12,000 (£10,000) to play the role of the father of the bride and realised at the last minute that she was nine years old”.
The girl is a Ukrainian national who had arrived in France with her 41-year-old mother two days before the mock ceremony, the prosecutor added.
Four people were arrested on Saturday, including the British “groom”, the girl’s mother, a 24-year-old Latvian woman who played the sister of the bride and the 55-year-old Latvian man hired to play the “father of the bride”, the tribunal said.
Disneyland Paris was “deceived” after the identity of a Latvian man and fake identification documents were used to secure the private event at the park, prosecutors added.
Around 100 hired extras were also falsely presented to the company as wedding guests.
The British man appeared before the tribunal of Meaux on Monday, after which he was charged.
French prosecutors said they had been in touch with authorities in the UK and had identified the suspect as a convicted sexual offender who is wanted in the UK.
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In his statement, Mr Bladier said: “[He] was reportedly convicted in the past, including for offences of a sexual nature against minors.
“He is, as such, listed in the British database of sexual offenders and is currently wanted nationally by the judicial authorities of his country of origin due to a breach of the requirements deriving from said order.”
In a previous statement, Mr Bladier said the wedding ceremony was “fictional and meant to be recorded in a private capacity”.
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Preliminary findings stated the “groom” had allegedly been “made-up professionally so that his face appeared totally different from his own”, according to the prosecutor.
The 24-year-old Latvian woman currently remains a witness in the investigation, he added.
Disneyland Paris has been approached for comments.
