Haroon Lorgat (pictured), 52, from Blackburn, Lancashire, has been jailed for six months
A man who married a woman from a wealthy Moroccan family but failed to tell her he already had both a wife and ex-wife has been jailed.
Haroon Lorgat, 52, met Nadia Benjelloun while she was on a business trip on behalf of her father. After a ‘whirlwind romance’ they wed a year later.
The couple, apparently smitten, had two children together during a ten-year long marriage.
A devout Muslim, she remained blissfully unaware of her husband’s past, which was only revealed after Miss Benjelloun – a teacher from a wealthy Moroccan family – split from Lorgat following a violent row.
In 2010 Lorgat was convicted of assaulting her and given a community order.
She subsequently filed for divorce and discovered he had been married for five years in the 1980s before remarrying in 1999.
Further inquiries revealed the divorce to the second woman was only finalised in 2004 – two years after Lorgat married Miss Benjelloun in a Muslim ceremony in Morocco and then a civil ceremony in the UK.
It was revealed he had used the divorce papers from his first marriage to convince the registrar he was free to marry Miss Benjelloun.
Lorgat today admitted bigamy and was jailed for six months at Preston Crown Court.
Miss Benjelloun said her husband’s deceit had caused her anxiety, depression and panic attacks.
Neither of the two ex-wives have been named.
Nadia Benjelloun (pictured), the daughter from wealthy Moroccan family, said her husband’s and deceit have caused her anxiety, depression and panic attacks
In the months before he tied the knot with Miss Benjelloun Lorgat, from Blackburn, Lancashire, he had provided her parents with a forged letter claiming to be from the Lancashire Council of Mosques – falsely saying he was still a bachelor.
Today, Miss Benjelloun, who is battling cancer, said she is owed £20,000 by her husband, who owns a furniture shop called Casa Bella in Blackburn.
She claims he moved money given to her by a health insurance company into his own bank account.
Nadia Benjelloun (pictured leaving Preston Crown Court) is battling cancer and said she is owed £20,000 by her husband
In a statement Miss Benjelloun, who is in her 40s, said: ‘In 2001, I met him when I was working for my father’s company and I was travelling and working in Belgium. He was insistent and persuasive and he visited me at my parents several times when I was living in Marrakech.
‘I found it weird that he wasn’t married and had no children at his age, but I believed him and so did my parents after he produced the letter from the Lancashire Council of Mosques.
‘I found out later that he did deceive me and he had been married on two previous occasions and that letter was not true.
‘I have been looking after the two children and have cancer. The lies and deceit have caused me anxiety, depression and panic attacks. I am unable to move on with my life until the marriage is over and I need a divorce. He has not agreed to a divorce in the Islamic religion and he continues to prolong these proceedings.’
Prosecuting at Preston Crown Court, Paul Cummings, said: ‘Nadia Benjelloun first met the defendant on a flight to Madrid and he showed great interest in the her. They later spent some time together in Paris before she returned to Morocco.
‘They stayed in contact through texts and phone calls and then he came to Morocco.
Haroon Lorgat (pictured) had been convicted of assaulting Miss Benjelloun (pictured) in 2010 and was given a community order
‘In 2001, her parents were inquisitive about the defendant’s background. The complainant’s father asked him to provide some proof he was not married. He had a letter from the Lancashire Council of Mosques. The letter said that he was not married and had never been married.
‘The family of the complainant were provided with this forged document and thought he was legitimate and suitable to be married. As a result they went through a Muslim wedding and then a civil wedding in Accrington in July 2002.
‘Following the marriage in Accrington, he did apply for divorce from his current wife but that did not happen until the decree absolute in 2004. The complainant did not know that the defendant was married and remained oblivious to this fact for 10 years.
‘During this time, she had two children with the defendant in 2003 and 2005. She only discovered the fact of the other marriage when she petitioned for divorce in 2012.’
Mr Cummings added: ‘Following the diagnosis of cancer, she received some money from health insurance and he somehow moved that money into his account. There was some money that he took and she says that he owes her somewhere in the region of £20,000.
The court heard Lorgat had been convicted of assaulting Miss Benjelloun in 2010 and was given a community order. In mitigation defence counsel Neil Howard, said: ‘He accepts that he deceived her and her family from the offset in 2002.
‘He did initially take steps to divorce his second wife in 2001. He had already paid the solicitors but the divorce didn’t go through. I do not intend on getting into an argument over finances, but he says that he pays the mortgage on their house.’
But Judge Simon Medland QC told Lorgat: ‘This is a case with a number of very serious aspects. Firstly, the deception of Ms Benjelloun and her family. It is clear to me that if you had been candid about your marriage, she would not have married you.
‘The marriage was not a success and impact this has had on your wife is very severe.
‘She has described a history of manipulative control and if she knew about your previous marriage she would not have married you in the first place.’