A WOMAN who set up fake marriages to help Indian men skip immigration procedures has been jailed for ten years at Isleworth Crown Court.

Jaswinder Gill, 41, was found guilty of facilitating an illegal immigrant into the UK, and one count of perverting the course of justice. She also pleaded to two counts of conspiring with others to facilitate illegal entry into the UK.

The court was told how Gill arranged marriages for men who wanted to stay in the UK by recruiting young British Asian women to take part in her scams.

Gill worked with her husband, Dharshan Gill, 40, to procure young British brides by promising them temporary work as models in India.

She was paid over £10,000 a time for marriages.

In one case in India a woman took part in a photo shoot involving what appeared to be a staged wedding.

But the ceremony was in fact real, and the woman soon discovered that she had married her "co-model".

The marriage had been arranged by Gill to allow the "groom" to obtain leave to remain in the UK.

In another similar case a young British woman was forced into marrying one of Mrs Gill's cousins in India.

Gill also tried to arrange a wedding in Gravesend, London - but her bride was arrested after she failed to persuade the Registrar that the marriage was genuine.

Detective Sergeant Gerri Mannion, who led the investigation to arrest Gill, said: "These marriages were a charade - arranged between perfect strangers who were coached by Gill to convince registrars of their intentions to live as man and wife in the UK.

"Jaswinder Gill was the driving force behind this enterprise. She manipulated and exploited vulnerable people to suit her own means.

"We will probably never know the true extent of her activities, but we certainly know that she made a significant amount of money out of these marriages. Over £250,000 was channelled through one of her bank account in the last few years alone."

DS Mannion said the sentence handed down to Gill should serve as a warning to other. He added: "The sentence reflects just how seriously the courts view this type of crime, it should also serve as a clear warning to anyone thinking about engaging in any similar schemes that they will be caught and prosecuted.

"It is an offence of perjury to take part in a bogus marriage and I would like to warn anyone considering such a scheme that they will face the courts."

Darshan Gill, pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiring with others to facilitate illegal entry into the UK. He was sentenced to six years imprisonment.

A third man, Fasil Rashid, was found guilty of two counts of conspiring to facilitate illegal entry into the UK. He was sentenced to four years imprisonment.

Two other men, Akash Khanna and Ahmed Zubair also pleaded guilty to their roles. Khanna pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to facilitate illegal entry into the UK. He was sentenced to 12 months suspended for two years.

Zubair pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to facilitate illegal entry into the UK, and one count of perverting the course of justice. He was sentenced to 12 months imprisonment.