A Northampton imam has been handed a suspended prison sentence after presiding over an illegal Islamic marriage ceremony for two teenagers.
Ceremony conducted despite law change
Ashraf Osmani, 52, admitted two counts of causing a child to enter into a marriage in November 2023. The imam, from Northampton's Central Mosque, performed the non-legally binding Islamic nikah service for the 16-year-olds after they were turned away from another mosque.
Prosecutor Jennifer Newcomb told Northampton Crown Court that Osmani agreed to conduct the ceremony just one day after meeting the would-be bride. He charged £50 for a certificate and checked the couple's passports to confirm their age, believing 16 was still permissible.
"Labour of mistake" over new legislation
Defence barrister James Gray argued that Osmani had made a single error in twenty years of conducting such ceremonies. "There had been no compulsion on the couple to marry," Mr Gray stated, adding that the teenagers were "happy" and "determined" to proceed.
The court heard that Osmani was unaware that legislation had changed nine months earlier, raising the minimum marriage age in England and Wales to 18. Mr Gray emphasised there had been "no wilful defiance of the law," noting that the imam had meticulously recorded details in the mosque register and believed he was acting within legal boundaries, as marriages at 16 remain legal in Scotland.
Suspended sentence and judicial warning
On Monday, 19 January 2026, High Court Judge Mr Justice Choudhury sentenced Osmani to a 15-week jail term, suspended for one year. The judge described the imam's approach as "negligent" and stated he "ought to have known the law had changed."
While accepting there was no violence or coercion and that the teenagers approached Osmani of their own volition, Mr Justice Choudhury said: "Whilst this was a mistake, it was a serious one." Osmani left the court covering his face with his hands and a scarf.
The Crown Prosecution Service confirmed this was the first prosecution of its kind under the new legislation. Deputy Chief Crown Prosecutor Samantha Shallow said: "Although the young people involved requested this ceremony, it is unlawful to conduct any form of binding marriage ceremony on people under the age of 18." She stressed that community leaders have a responsibility to be aware of and abide by the law to protect vulnerable young people.
