'Bogus' marriages investigated

[Anatoli]

Over 100 cases of marriage or intended marriage between Asian men and Eastern European women in Ireland are being investigated by the Garda National Immigration Bureau.

Officers believe that many of the marriages are undertaken so that the men can secure residency in the State.

A 27-year-old man from Pakistan, who was arrested as part of the investigation, was convicted and sentenced in Blanchardstown District Court this morning after he was caught with two false passports.

He had been due to marry a teenage Latvian woman in Letterkenny this week but the court was told that that wedding will not go ahead because gardaí have objected.

Minister for Justice Dermot Ahern said he is concerned about the issue.

Mr Ahern told the weekend's EU Justice Minsters Conference that over 480 applications for residency by men from Pakistan were based on marriages to Latvian, Polish and Estonian women.

http://www.rte.ie/news/2010/0125/immigration.html