A vicar who was accused of conducting hundreds of bogus weddings has walked free after a judge said immigration officers had lied on oath.
Revd Nathan Ntege, 55, was investigated over his work at St Jude’s with St Aidan Church in Thornton Heath in South London.
The prosecution said immigration officers had become suspicious when the number of marriages there rose from six a year to six a day.
He was on trial at Inner London Crown Court on 14 counts of breaching immigration law and fraud.
However Judge Nic Madge ruled a number of witnesses acted unlawfully.
According to the BBC, he said: “I am satisfied that this is a case in which there has been both bad faith and serious misconduct on the part of the prosecution.
“I am satisfied that officers at the heart of this prosecution have deliberately concealed important evidence and lied on oath.”
The case against six people accused alongside Mr Ntege has also collapsed.
The Crown Prosecution Service says it accepts the judge’s ruling while the Home Office says it’s disappointed: “The collapse of this trial is an extremely disappointing end to a long investigation.
“We expect the highest standards from all our staff, and clearly we are treating the judge’s ruling that our officers acted in bad faith with the utmost seriousness.”
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