Suspicion: MAFS UK participant accused of fraudulently using the show

• Metropolitan Police said it arrested a Married at First Sight UK participant on suspicion of fraudulently using the show.
• BBC Panorama reported that the show contained hidden camera footage of alleged wrongdoing; all participants who spoke to the programme were told they could be identified.
• Channel 4 said it reviewed footage of participants in relation to the allegations.

A Married at First Sight UK (MAFS) participant was arrested on suspicion of fraudulently using the show after BBC Panorama’s investigation. BBC said it was contacted by the Metropolitan Police.

In a statement, the participant’s lawyer said, which the BBC did not name, that it was not clear what the Metropolitan Police had alleged, as the investigation was not yet complete, and that the right to anonymity.

In a statement, Panorama said it was told by the producers of the show that two people were involved in the allegations, and that both were told they could be identified. It added that the programme was not yet complete. It said all participants who spoke to the programme were told they could be identified.

According to BBC, Metropolitan Police said 18 June it arrested a man in his 30s on suspicion of fraudulently using the show. The statement also said that it was not yet clear what the investigation would show, and that the participant had been released on bail pending further inquiries.

Channel 4, which produces the show, said it was aware of the allegations. Metropolitan Guardian said it was investigating reports that Channel 4 had reviewed two complaints: one that the show’s participants had been fraudulently using the show, and another that they might have been involved in wrongdoing.

Metropolitan Guardian also said Priya Dogra, chief executive of Channel 4, said in a statement that the company had received a number of complaints, which it had investigated. CPL, a company that produces the UK version of the show, denied the claims and said it had been providing a “gold standard” and “industry leading” service, and that participants were not aware of any internal wrongdoing.

In a statement, Married at First Sight UK said that it was not aware of any specific allegations, that the show’s “mock marriage ceremony” was a staged event, that it was not real, and that it was not intended to mislead participants.

Tags: Crime/Culture/Europe