A chilling twist has emerged amid the investigation into a mock wedding between a British man and a nine-year-old girl at Disneyland Paris.
The supposed 'groom' was hauled off in handcuffs on Saturday morning (21 June) after police swooped in on the 'ceremony' which was allegedly taking place in front of 100 people who'd been hired to pose as 'guests'.
Part of the popular theme park had been privately hired for the fake nuptials and it reportedly unfolded in front of the iconic Sleeping Beauty castle.
But alarm bells began ringing when people began to notice that the 'bride' - who was donning a wedding dress and reportedly had four-inch heels taped to her feet - was just a child.
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One witness described the young girl, who is of Ukrainian nationality, as 'tiny', while another said they were left 'sickened' when they realised what was going on.
Dozens of extras had allegedly been hired to take part in what assistant prosecutor for the Seine-et-Marne department, Alexandre Verney, has described as a 'staged wedding'.
"They had privately hired Disneyland, claiming that it was a real marriage," he told reporters.
Disneyland Paris said via a translated statement that 'a private event planned in our destination was immediately cancelled by our teams after the identification of important irregularities'.
The amusement park confirmed that 'police were quickly alerted and intervened on the spot as soon as possible', adding that it has also 'filed a complaint with the competent authorities' and is cooperating fully with the investigation.
French prosecutors have since shared an update on the bizarre case and chillingly revealed that the 'groom' is a 39-year-old known paedophile who is 'on the run from UK authorities'.
The British man was charged with numerous offences on Tuesday (24 June), including fraud, breach of trust, money laundering and identity theft, the Meaux prosecutor's office announced.
A statement from prosecutor Jean-Baptiste Bladier explained that the suspect is known in the UK 'for sexual offences against minors'.
"He is registered on the British sex offenders register and is currently wanted at the national level by the judicial authorities of his country of origin, for failing to comply with the obligations arising from said registration," it explained.
According to officials, the wedding was 'a fictitious ceremony intended to be filmed privately' and the Brit is alleged to have 'recruited, with the help of a Latvian citizen, other Latvian nationals to ensure the smooth running of the event'.
Prosecutors say both Disneyland Paris and the approximately 100 people who appeared as extras were duped, claiming that the event was 'falsely presented' to the theme park.
"The organiser having assumed the identity of a Latvian national and used false documents to obtain the conclusion of the contract for the privatisation of the park," the statement continued, adding that the Disneyland set-up came at a reported total cost of €130,000 (£110,800).
The young girl had arrived in France just two days before the mock ceremony and she did not suffer 'any violence, neither physical nor sexual' and 'was not forced to play this role' of a bride, police said.
The child's mother, a 41-year-old Ukrainian woman, was also arrested alongside a Latvian woman, 24, and a Latvian man, 55, following the strange 'ceremony'.
LADbible Group has contacted Disneyland Paris for comment.
Topics: World News, Crime, Disney, Disneyland, UK News
Olivia Burke