Hong Kong woman ‘tricked’ into marrying stranger

A Hong Kong woman has claimed she was duped into marrying a stranger during a job offer scam in mainland China.

The 21-year-old, who has not been named, said she had been asked to participate in a mock marriage ceremony as part of training course to become a wedding planner.

However, during the ceremony, in Fuzhou, Fujian, she and the man, who was a similar age, signed a genuine marriage document and were officially married.

The alleged scammers had told the woman that there would be no problem because they knew the mayor, reported the South China Morning Post.

“They said they would void [the marriage record] afterwards,” she said. She only realised that she was actually married when she returned to Hong Kong and sought legal help, but the police were unable to step in due to lack of evidence. Instead the woman turned to the Hong Kong Federation of Trade Unions (FTU).

Tong Kang-yiu, director of the FTU’s rights and benefits committee, told the SCMP that the woman may be just one of many victims of a larger racket.

“We hope that by sharing this case, those who haven’t realised they were scammed will be aware,” Tong said. “The police failed to handle the case instantly. We need to give the police more pressure.”

The motives behind the case are not known. However, mainland residents with a spouse in Hong Kong can apply for a one-way permit to settle in the city.