Jacky Jhaj, the British man charged with planning a mock wedding to a child at Disneyland Paris, has a troubling history of sexual offenses against minors. At the age of 39, Jhaj was already listed on the sex offenders register, having been convicted in 2016 for sexual activity with two 15-year-olds.
The fake ceremony, set for Saturday, involved a nine-year-old Ukrainian girl designated as the bride. Jhaj was arrested when an actor he hired to portray the father of the bride alerted police to the situation.
Jhaj's questionable activities have drawn scrutiny over the years, notably when he was investigated by the BBC. In 2023, he was found to have hired hundreds of child actors, some as young as six, for a staged film premiere in London. Teenage girls reported that they were instructed to show excitement for Jhaj without being informed of his criminal background.
In a shocking sequence of events leading to his latest arrest, Jhaj was recorded engaging in increasingly bizarre behavior, including posing naked in front of a phony BBC News truck that had been ignited in London. For the Disney wedding, reports indicate around 100 extras were hired for the event, costing upwards of €130,000.
French authorities have indicated that while the young girl was not a victim of physical or sexual violence during this incident, she was flown into France just days prior to the planned wedding. Jhaj had allegedly deceived Disneyland Paris, utilizing a fraudulent Latvian ID to secure the venue.
The Metropolitan Police in the UK are in touch with French authorities regarding Jhaj, who faces charges including fraud and identity theft, and is currently being held in pretrial detention. As investigations continue, the validity of his unprecedented production ventures raises alarms about how he managed them despite being under a Sexual Harm Prevention Order, which restricts his activities particularly related to minors.
