Imam Sentenced After Illegally Marrying Underage Teens

A landmark prosecution exposes how a faith ceremony for two 16-year-olds breached new marriage laws, leaving a senior imam convicted but walking free from immediate custody. An imam who conducted an unlawful religious marriage ceremony for two 16-year-olds was spared immediate custody after becoming the first defendant sentenced under legislation outlawing child marriage, following proceedings at Northampton Crown Court.

Ashraf Osmani, 52, officiated a Nikah ceremony at Northampton Central Mosque in November 2023, despite the legal minimum age for marriage having risen to 18 earlier that year under the Marriage and Civil Partnership (Minimum Age) Act 2022. The change, which came into force in February 2023, removed the previous provision allowing 16- and 17-year-olds to marry with parental consent.

Osmani, of Abington Avenue, Northampton, pleaded guilty to two counts of carrying out conduct for the purpose of causing a child to enter into a marriage. On Monday, he was sentenced to 15 weeks’ imprisonment in relation to the female victim and 12 weeks in relation to the male victim, to run concurrently and suspended for 12 months, with an additional victim surcharge and £150 in court costs.

Opening the case, prosecutor Jennifer Newcomb said the marriage came to light after safeguarding concerns were raised when the teenage girl’s family found a marriage certificate in her bedroom. She told the court: “She told the police she was not forced or coerced.” Ms Newcomb said the girl had initially attended another mosque, where the imam refused to conduct the ceremony because of her age, before approaching Osmani at Northampton Central Mosque.

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The court was told that the teenage boy later told police the ceremony had been organised by the girl and that he had “gone along with it”, believing it was “not an official marriage”. Both teenagers maintained there had been no pressure or coercion involved.

Ms Newcomb said Osmani told police he was unaware the law had changed and said he would not repeat the conduct. However, she added: “It was incumbent on him to know and follow the law relating to marriage in the UK.” She told the court Osmani had played “a leading or significant role” and had been “in a position of responsibility” when conducting the ceremony. “Child marriage is illegal whatever the circumstances,” she said.

Mitigating, defence barrister James Gray said Osmani had not acted in wilful defiance of the law. “A person who makes a mistake in ignorance of the law can’t use that ignorance as their defence,” he said, “but they can say there was no deliberate breach.” He added that Osmani had been “labouring under a mistake as to the change in the law”.