Blushing New York bride charged for marrying eight husbands

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Blushing New York bride charged for marrying eight husbands

Woman married various men from 'red-flagged' countries, in what prosecutors say was immigration scam

PUBLISHED : Saturday, 11 April, 2015, 4:46pm
UPDATED : Sunday, 12 April, 2015, 12:09am

Agencies in New York

Serial bride Liana Barrientos, 39, appears in court in the Bronx, New York. Photo: Reuters

A serial New York bride was accused yesterday after juggling eight husbands at once and getting married six times in one year, prosecutors said.

Liana Barrientos pleaded not guilty in a Bronx court yesterday to charges of fraud as part of an immigration scam.

The blonde 39-year-old had married men from Egypt, Turkey, Mali, Georgia, the Czech Republic and Bangladesh – and she tied the knot an eighth time with Pakistani man Rashid Rajput, the Bronx District Attorney’s Office said.

New York state records show she has been married 10 times since 1999 – and that 2002 was a particularly busy year in which Barrientos walked down the aisle six times in different towns. The New York Times reported that Barrientos has past convictions for drugs and theft.

While still in her mid-20s, court papers show that Barrientos celebrated Valentine’s Day in 2002 by getting married a fourth time, seemingly without a single divorce.

Just two weeks later, when most brides might be winding down their honeymoon, she married husband number five. Two weeks later, it was the turn of husband number six.

She then closed out the summer of 2002 with another three weddings in May, July and August, before calling it a halt for eight years.

Six of her husbands used Barrientos to apply for permanent residency in the United States, including sixth husband Rajput, prosecutors said.

Rajput was deported to Pakistan in 2006 following a US government terrorism task force investigation involving his making threatening statements about the United States.

Liana Barrientos (centre) walked down the aisle six times in different towns in a single year. Photo: Reuters

Her wedding mania was uncovered when she was arrested last November after forms she filed in New York City in 2010 for a marriage licence with Salle Keita from Mali raised suspicions. A District Attorney’s Office investigator found a trove of marriage certificates tying her to multiple other husbands in various towns across New York state.

Appearing in state court in the Bronx yesterday, Barrientos was charged on two counts of felony fraud that prosecutors say stemmed from a scheme to gain US citizenship for grooms from countries “red-flagged” by the Department of Homeland Security.

“Not guilty,” said Barrientos, sporting a ring on her left hand and shaking her head as she faced a judge during her arraignment. She and her lawyer refused to comment afterwards.

When she applied for the 2010 marriage licence, Barrientos stated she had never been married before, court papers showed.

Barrientos had stated on the 2010 forms that Keita was her first and only husband, and that statement prompted the two felony counts of offering a false instrument – the licence and marriage application – each punishable by up to four years in prison if convicted.

Assistant District Attorney Jessica Lupo said that at one time, Barrientos was supposedly married to eight men at the same time in the New York City area. Lupo said Barrientos is still officially married to four men.

When investigators asked her about her marriage to husband Vakhtang Dzneladze of Georgia as he sought US residency, Barrientos admitted “receiving money for those actions”, Lupo said.

As soon as the wedding bells stopped ringing, seven husbands filed for legal permanent resident status, Lupo said.

“When some of them were denied, they filed for divorce immediately and re-filed for their immigration status with other marriages,” she said.

The US Immigration and Customs Enforcement tags certain countries with red flags as part of efforts to prevent “illegal export of sensitive US munitions and strategic technology” and protect “American technological accomplishment from adversaries”, according to the State Department.