Wednesday, January 26 2005 13:37 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

London: A series of British women were conned into marrying Indian men who wanted to live in Britain as part of a sophisticated immigration scam, a court was yesterday (Jan 25, 2005) informed.

Jaswinder Gill took one woman who was a heroin addict to India and paid her to take part in a wedding, which he claimed was a mock ceremony for a modelling shoot, Isleworth Crown Court in west London was told.

The 41-year-old defendant, who was paid up to 11,000 pounds (16,000 Euros, $ 20,500) per wedding for her services, abandoned the vulnerable bride in India, leaving her parents to have to travel from Britain to collect her.

The "manipulative" Gill told a series of women that they would be taken to India to work as models or in the beauty trade, but they were then persuaded to take part in bogus marriages, prosecutor Robin Johnson said.

Gill, from London, denies charges of assisting illegal entry into Britain and conspiracy to pervert the course of justice, while admitting two other immigration-related offences.

Her husband and three other people have pleaded not guilty to a range of charges linked to the alleged scam.

According to Johnson, it was Gill who was the "driving, organisational force behind the whole enterprise, from start to finish", with the others playing subordinate roles.

The case was continuing.