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Telegraph
27-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Telegraph
Disneyland fake-wedding paedophile staged series of stunts involving girls
A convicted paedophile who faked a Disneyland wedding to a nine-year-old had previously staged a series of lavish stunts with young girls, a court has heard. Jaskarn Singh Jhaj posed as a producer to turn a National Trust property into a film set, hired the Odeon Leicester Square for a fake premiere and set up a dance school for eight to 14-year-old girls at which he turned up in a Bugatti supercar to greet them. On Friday, Isleworth Crown Court heard that 39-year-old Jhaj staged the events in order to meet young girls and underage teenagers in the hope of engaging in sexual activity with them. Earlier, this week it emerged that Jahj had travelled to France, where he was arrested by the French police after staging a fake wedding to a nine-year-old girl from Ukraine at Disneyland Paris on Saturday. French prosecutors said Jhaj faces several counts of fraud, abuse of trust, money laundering and identity theft after his arrest at the theme park in Marne-la-Vallee. The nine-year-old Ukrainian girl had arrived in France with her 41-year-old mother two days before the mock ceremony. Police were called by a 'guest' who later claimed he was hired for the wedding – which cost a total of £110,000 to stage – to play the father of the bride, only to realise 'at the last minute that she was nine years old'. 'He poses a risk of sexual harm to female children' The Metropolitan Police obtained a 10-year extension from the court to an existing Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO) imposed on Jhaj in 2016 after he was convicted of sexual activity with two 15-year-old girls he had picked up after driving around Hounslow. Jhaj gave the girls a lift in his Range Rover, bought them meals, alcohol and gifts and pretended to be a famous film producer. He was sentenced to four years in prison and placed on the sex offenders register indefinitely. Following his release from Brixton Prison in October 2017, the Met applied for a SHPO against him. This week, the Met Commissioner went to court to obtain an extension to the order after evidence emerged that Jhaj had gone on to stage a series of stunts with the aim of attracting young girls. Benedict Scantlebury, prosecuting, told the court: 'The 2016 convictions for sexual activity with two females under the age of 16, and the seriousness of the underlying facts of those offences demonstrates that the Respondent [Jhaj] poses a risk of sexual harm to the public, namely to female children. '[Jhaj] has gone to great lengths and significant financial expense to engineer situations in which he is able to have contact with female children, including those under the age of 16. 'He has organised large-scale filming events in ways to avoid a breach of SHPO due to the presence of adult supervision, but which evince the efforts he is willing to go to in order to have contact with female children and which could readily escalate into grooming.' Fake film set and premiere Isleworth Crown Court heard that in August 2021, Jhaj had turned the National Trust's Waddesdon Manor, in Buckinghamshire, into a set where he was filmed firing a machine gun from the turret of one of several armoured vehicles. Cast and crew for the production grew so concerned over his behaviour towards a 16-year-old actress that they stopped filming and called police. In October 2023, Jhaj hired the Odeon Leicester Square to stage a fake premiere at which 100 children aged seven to 14 were told to act like fans, reaching out and touching him. The court heard that Jhaj – who changed his name by deed poll to London JA – had used other aliases to make these bookings 'such that the casting agencies were not aware he was a registered sex offender'. Other stunts followed, including a fake funeral at Brompton Cemetery and the London Oratory, using young female actors. In June last year, Jhaj, who also used prosthetics to alter his appearance, went on to hire a choreographer to attend a dance school in Tower Hamlets, where a group of girls aged eight to 14 were led outside as he pulled up in the Bugatti. Mr Scantlebury told the court: 'The respondent [Jhaj] interacted with the group of children and handed them gifts. The families were not aware that he was a registered sex offender.' Isleworth Crown Court was shown a number of films posted to social media by Jhaj in which he appeared with several young women, including schoolgirls. In one, posted on YouTube in May 2020, under the title 'Dangerous Sexual Predator, Jacky Jhaj of West London', he is seen sitting bare-chested in the front seat of a car with a number of girls in the back, including one wearing a school uniform. DC Andy Hawse, of Hounslow public protection unit, told the court: '[Jhaj] gets in with her. The film cuts before what is assumed to be some form of sexual activity.' In other footage, a group of young girls are filmed screaming and touching Jhaj as he supposedly leaves prison escorted by his security staff. Another video from 2020 shows a young woman lying on the back seat of a car, with her bare legs in the air. 'Absurd grandiose thinking' The court heard that it was unclear where Jhaj, from Feltham, west London, had obtained the funds to pay for these stunts. He registered multiple companies with Companies House, along with the names of fake directors, to arrange and pay for the events. His sister-in-law told police officers, who recently attended the family home looking for him, that she had not seen him for months. UK police officers have been in contact with French authorities following Jhaj's arrest across the Channel, where he had travelled in breach of his requirement to notify police of his movements. He has been remanded in custody by the French authorities for four months. Following a half day hearing, Judge Martin Edmunds KC, the recorder of Kensington and Chelsea, ruled that Jhaj 'is at risk of further sexual offending'. Granting an extension of the SHPO until November 2034 in his absence, Judge Edmunds stated: 'The stunts show absurd, grandiose thinking. They feed and illustrate his dangerous sexual preoccupation with young children, and also his defiance of controls. 'The total absence of any evidence showing that the defendant is seeking to address appropriately his preoccupation with children means a lengthy order is necessary.'
Yahoo
25-06-2025
- Yahoo
British man charged over 'wedding' with child, 9, at Disneyland Paris
A British man has been charged in connection with organising the "mock wedding" of a nine-year-old Ukrainian girl in Disneyland Paris. French prosecutors said the 39-year-old man was a convicted sexual offender who is wanted in the UK. His name has not been made public. He was arrested when police were called to the amusement park on Saturday morning at dawn by a "guest" who said he had been hired by the man to play the father of the bride. The man said he had been paid €12,000 to play the role and that he only realised at the last minute that the "bride" was a child, according to a statement by Meaux prosecutor Jean-Baptiste Bladier. The statement also said the Ukrainian girl - who arrived in France two days earlier - had not been a victim of either physical or sexual violence and had not been "forced to play the role" of bride. A woman who says she was hired to play the role of a guest told BFMTV that when she arrived at Disneyland Paris she saw a "little girl dressed in white with her hair all done up and I saw a woman who picked her up in her arms... and I was shocked, I burst into tears". "When I saw [a] child - it was horrific." Around 100 French extras had been recruited to take part in the fake ceremony, which was to be filmed in a private capacity. The British man had reportedly hired Disneyland Paris for several hours for the stunt, in which he was to play the role of the groom. Preliminary findings also stated he had allegedly been "made-up professionally so that his face appeared totally different from his own", according to the prosecutor. Three other people - including the 41-year-old mother of the girl, a 24-year-old Latvian woman who was to play the bride's sister and a 55-year-old Latvian man - were also arrested. By Tuesday only the British man was still being held by police. The British man and the Latvian woman appeared in front of a judge in Meaux on 23 June and the man was charged with fraud, breach of trust, money laundering, and identity theft and placed in pretrial detention. The Latvian remains a witness in the investigation. The prosecutor's statement also said that Disneyland Paris had been "deceived" and that the organiser had used a fake Latvian ID to hire the venue. Disneyland Paris can be rented by members of the public outside opening hours. BFMTV reported that the "mock wedding" may have cost organiser more than €130,000 (£110,000). Mr Bladier's statement said that the British man "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." It is unclear, at this stage, what the point of the "stunt" was. The investigation continues.
BBC News
24-06-2025
- BBC News
British man charged with organising Disneyland Paris "mock wedding" of nine-year-old
A British man has been charged in connection with organising the "mock wedding" of a nine-year-old Ukrainian girl in Disneyland Paris. French prosecutors said the 39-year-old man was a convicted sexual offender who is wanted in the UK. His name has not been made public. He was arrested when police were called to the amusement park on Saturday morning at dawn by a "guest" who said he had been hired by the man to play the father of the bride. The man said he had been paid €12,000 to play the role and that he only realised at the last minute that the "bride" was a child, according to a statement by Meaux prosecutor Jean-Baptiste Bladier. The statement also said the Ukrainian girl - who arrived in France two days earlier - had not been a victim of either physical or sexual violence and had not been "forced to play the role" of bride. A woman who says she was hired to play the role of a guest told BFMTV that when she arrived at Disneyland Paris she saw a "little girl dressed in white with her hair all done up and I saw a woman who picked her up in her arms... and I was shocked, I burst into tears"."When I saw [a] child - it was horrific."Around 100 French extras had been recruited to take part in the fake ceremony, which was to be filmed in a private British man had reportedly hired Disneyland Paris for several hours for the stunt, in which he was to play the role of the groom. Preliminary findings also stated he had allegedly been "made-up professionally so that his face appeared totally different from his own", according to the other people - including the 41-year-old mother of the girl, a 24-year-old Latvian woman who was to play the bride's sister and a 55-year-old Latvian man - were also arrested. By Tuesday only the British man was still being held by police. The British man and the Latvian woman appeared in front of a judge in Meaux on 23 June and the man was charged with fraud, breach of trust, money laundering, and identity theft and placed in pretrial detention. The Latvian remains a witness in the prosecutor's statement also said that Disneyland Paris had been "deceived" and that the organiser had used a fake Latvian ID to hire the venue. Disneyland Paris can be rented by members of the public outside opening hours. BFMTV reported that the "mock wedding" may have cost organiser more than €130,000 (£110,000).Mr Bladier's statement said that the British man "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."It is unclear, at this stage, what the point of the "stunt" investigation continues.
The Independent
24-06-2025
- The Independent
British man charged after ‘mock wedding' with girl, 9, in Disneyland Paris
A British man has been charged after he reportedly organised a 'mock wedding ' in Disneyland Paris involving a nine-year-old girl in the role of the bride. French prosecutors have said the 39-year-old man, who reportedly played the 'groom' in the fake ceremony, faces several counts of fraud, abuse of trust, money laundering and identity theft. Police were called by a 'guest' who later claimed he was hired to play the father of the bride at the entertainment resort in Marne-la-Vallée, France, on Saturday. A statement released by the prosecutor of the tribunal in Meaux Jean-Baptiste Bladier said the man 'explained he was paid 12,000 euros to play the role of the father of the bride and realised at the last minute that she was nine years old.' The prosecutor added that the girl is a Ukrainian national who had arrived in France with her 41-year-old mother two days prior to the mock ceremony. 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. Prosecutors added 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, and that about a hundred hired extras were 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 on Tuesday they have been in touch with British authorities and identified the British suspect as a convicted sexual offender who is wanted in the UK. Mr Bladier wrote in a statement: '(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.' Mr Bladier said in a previous statement published on Sunday that the wedding ceremony was 'fictional and meant to be recorded in a private capacity'. Preliminary findings also 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, the prosecutor said.
CTV News
23-06-2025
- Entertainment
- CTV News
French police probe fake Disneyland ‘marriage' with nine-year-old
French police were on Sunday probing the circumstances of a bizarre stunt at Disneyland outside of Paris, with a group of adults suspected of hiring the theme park and paying hundreds of extras to stage a fake marriage for a nine-year-old Ukrainian girl. Two people were held for questioning in the case, which initially caused alarm when staff alerted police on Saturday that it could have concerned an illegal child marriage. But investigators now believe that the so-called 'marriage' was staged, with the girl's mother reportedly saying that she wanted her to feel like a Disney 'princess' for the day. 'The event turned out to be a staged event, with the guests themselves extras' invited to be part of the stunt, deputy prosecutor Alexandre Verney said. 'So it wasn't a wedding, but a staged wedding filmed with around a hundred extras. They hired Disneyland Paris, pretending it was a real wedding,' he told AFP. Four people were arrested and taken into custody, and the questioning of two of them -- suspected of fraud and money laundering -- was extended on Saturday evening. They are the so-called 'groom' who is believed to be behind the event, 22 years old and 'presumed to be British', and a Latvian woman, 24, said a source close to the case. However, the other two people detained -- a 41-year-old Ukrainian woman, and a 55-year-old Latvian man -- were released. The investigations, including a medical examination of the nine-year-old girl, a Ukrainian national, found that 'she had not been subjected to any violence or coercive acts,' the prosecutor's office said. According to the Le Parisien daily, which first reported the incident, a man had several weeks previously hired the Disneyland Paris complex for a sum of 130,000 euros (US$150,000) for several hours before it opened to the public. Staff were astonished when the nine-year-old appeared wearing high heels on Saturday morning, barely able to stand in the elaborate footwear, and they alerted the authorities, it said. The paper said the man who organised the event had submitted false documents concerning his identity and Disneyland filed a complaint. Hundreds of extras were bussed in to play the part of the guests, it said, while the girl's mother told investigators she wanted to organise a 'day worthy of a princess' for her daughter.
