The key facts
- A 37-year-old man married his 52-year-old future mother-in-law in order to leave for Moldova
- At the Mohyliv-Podilskyi crossing point, the spouses gave contradictory answers about their life together
- The man was denied exit; a report was sent to the police under an article carrying a penalty of up to nine years of imprisonment
Exit attempt through a sham marriage
The State Border Guard Service of Ukraine reported on its Telegram channel about a case at the Mohyliv-Podilskyi crossing point in Vinnytsia region. Border guards were checking the documents of a 37-year-old man and a 52-year-old woman who, according to the agency, had a disability. The couple was traveling on the basis of a marriage which, as it turned out, had been concluded so that the man could legally move to Moldova.
Confession and contradictory statements
During the check, the 'groom' admitted that his companion was in fact his future mother-in-law, and that he had registered the marriage with her in order to cross the border. The woman, meanwhile, claimed that she had feelings for the man despite the large age difference. Border guards noted that the spouses got confused in their answers and told different stories about their life together.
Consequences
The man was denied border crossing. A report was sent to the police under the criminal article on illegal transportation of persons across the state border; its maximum penalty provides for imprisonment for a term of up to nine years.
A similar case in March
According to the publication, in March of this year, at the Ukraine-Moldova border, a 44-year-old resident of Kyiv was already detained; he had hoped to leave the country by registering a marriage with an elderly woman — the mother of his cohabitant.
