European Police Bust Moroccan-Led Marriage Fraud Ring Spanning Multiple Countries

It is a well-organized network that an investigation carried out in four European countries has made it possible to dismantle. It is run by Moroccans specialized in fraud, falsification of residence documents and marriage fraud. To succeed in their sham marriage schemes, they exploit drug-addicted European women, indicates Le360.

But most of the sham marriages contracted were doomed to fail, because the European Union countries had eventually discovered the trick and had taken strong measures to circumvent the traffickers’ stratagems.

It took several months of investigation for four Moroccans, suspected of being involved in this network, to be arrested. For several years, they have managed to defraud both foreigners and Moroccans wishing to obtain a residence permit. Their favorite prey are people in an irregular situation in Europe or Moroccans wishing to cross the Mediterranean in search of a settlement in Europe.

The investigators do not rule out the existence of connections with sham marriage networks in Morocco, for a commission that can reach 30,000 dirhams per case, the same source specifies.