Editor’s Note: This story contains discussions of child abuse that may be disturbing. Reader discretion is advised. If you suspect a child is being abused, find out how to report it in your state here. To connect with a counselor, you can call the National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-422-4253.
(NewsNation) — A convicted sex offender from Britain was arrested in France after he was accused of trying to stage a mock wedding with a 9-year-old girl at Disneyland Paris.
According to the BBC, 39-year-old Jacky Jhaj allegedly set up the ceremony on Saturday, June 21, and paid Disneyland Paris to coordinate. There were around 100 people paid as extras in the staged ceremony that cost around $151,000 so it could be filmed privately.
French prosecutors say the girl arrived in France two days before the ceremony and was not harmed physically or sexually, and she was not forced into the role of playing the bride. Park staff, however, said she was dressed as a bride and was getting her hair done for the ceremony. An extra who was hired to play the girl’s father alerted staff, who later called the police.
The New York Times reported that Jhaj allegedly used a stolen Latvian ID and forged documents in order to book the event through Disney. He is being charged with fraud, money laundering and identity theft. Prosecutors say he also wore makeup so that he would not look like himself.
Authorities also arrested the girl’s mother, a 55-year-old man and a 24-year-old woman who was cast as the bride’s sister.
Jhaj had been convicted in 2016 and sentenced to four years in prison for having a sexual relationship with two 15-year-old girls in London. Metropolitan Police said he would drive around to different schools in a London suburb and try to pick up young girls by claiming he was a Hollywood film producer and offering them alcohol.