Six admit sham marriage racket in Black Country

The four men and two women appeared at Wolverhampton Crown Court and pleaded guilty to charges relating to a suspected fake wedding operation which police smashed in a series of dawn raids in October.

Mohammed Akhtar, aged 27, of Dunstall Road, Wolverhampton, admitted 11 counts of conspiring to facilitate the commission of a breach of UK immigration law by a non-EU person. Leon Horvat, 20, also of Dunstall Road, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to facilitate the commission of a breach of UK immigration law by a non-EU person, one count of participating in a sham marriage and one count of conspiring to arrange a sham marriage.

Ishwarjot Singh, 25, of Highfield Road, Smethwick, admitted conspiring to facilitate a sham marriage.

Sandeep Bhullar, 27, of Tamworth Road, Corley, near Coventry, pleaded guilty to conspiring to facilitate the commission of a breach of UK immigration law by a non-EU person.

All charges relate to events which happened between October 20, 2012 and October 13, 2013.

All four defendants were remanded in custody to appear in court at a later date.

Polish national Marcin Cislak, 32, of Dunstall Road, admitted conspiring to facilitate the commission of a breach of UK immigration law by a non-EU person. Ingrid Monova, 35, of Bright Street, admitted a similar offence.

Both defendants were granted conditional bail and their cases adjourned.

Five defendants from Wolverhampton pleaded not guilty to conspiring to facilitate the commission of a breach of UK immigration law by a non-EU person. Veronika Mihalova, 21, of Dunstall Road; Lucie Ondicova, 25, of Springfield Road; Veronika Ondicova, 22, of Gatis Street; Vera Horvatova, 53, of Dunstall Road, and Petra Michalkova, 33, of Carter Road will go on trial on May 6.