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| Rochdale sham marriage vicar John Magumba jailed | Rochdale sham marriage vicar John Magumba jailed |
| (40 minutes later) | |
| A Church of England vicar from Rochdale who carried out sham marriages to allow illegal immigrants to stay in the UK has been jailed. | A Church of England vicar from Rochdale who carried out sham marriages to allow illegal immigrants to stay in the UK has been jailed. |
| The Reverend Canon Dr John Magumba, 58, performed 31 bogus wedding ceremonies at two churches in the town. | The Reverend Canon Dr John Magumba, 58, performed 31 bogus wedding ceremonies at two churches in the town. |
| Magumba, originally from Uganda, pleaded guilty in December to conspiring to facilitate a breach of UK immigration law. | Magumba, originally from Uganda, pleaded guilty in December to conspiring to facilitate a breach of UK immigration law. |
| He was jailed for two-and-a-half-years at Bolton Crown Court. | He was jailed for two-and-a-half-years at Bolton Crown Court. |
| 'Asked no questions' | 'Asked no questions' |
| The father-of-six had also pleaded guilty to theft of more than £8,000 from his church councils by not declaring income from weddings and funerals. | The father-of-six had also pleaded guilty to theft of more than £8,000 from his church councils by not declaring income from weddings and funerals. |
| The court heard that Magumba, originally from Uganda, "asked no questions" when marrying a stream of Nigerian men and eastern European women who went to his Rochdale parish. | The court heard that Magumba, originally from Uganda, "asked no questions" when marrying a stream of Nigerian men and eastern European women who went to his Rochdale parish. |
| He took on so many weddings involving foreign nationals that his diocese made him head of a party on how to spot sham marriages. | He took on so many weddings involving foreign nationals that his diocese made him head of a party on how to spot sham marriages. |
| Fran Gough, from the Crown Prosecution Service, said: "He conducted these wedding ceremonies knowing full well that they were [shams], purely to assist non-EU citizens in their bid to gain UK residency. | |
| "His dishonesty in effectively plundering church funds is also difficult to believe in someone whom others looked to for moral guidance." | |
| Magumba arrived in the UK in 2004 on an ecclesiastical visa, bringing his family with him from Uganda. | Magumba arrived in the UK in 2004 on an ecclesiastical visa, bringing his family with him from Uganda. |
| Investigators said that money was "always an issue" for him, that he had requested crisis loans from the Church and even asked parishioners for money to "clothe his children". | |
| He was arrested last March as part of an investigation by the UK Border Agency. | He was arrested last March as part of an investigation by the UK Border Agency. |
| Sham marriages usually involve a non-European marrying an EU citizen to secure long-term residency, the right to work and the right to claim benefits in the UK. | Sham marriages usually involve a non-European marrying an EU citizen to secure long-term residency, the right to work and the right to claim benefits in the UK. |