A man who lied about being licensed as a wedding officiant has left a vicious trail of destruction after he conned couples – some of whom were close friends – into paying him $1,000, ruining their special day with ’emotional distress’ and ‘shame’.
William ‘Will’ Cheesman, 31, pleaded guilty in Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on Monday to charges including solemnizing a marriage by an unauthorized person
The court heard he had cheated and directed fake weddings for five couples who paid between $700 and $1,000 to marry them, unaware that he had no legal right to do so.
Cheesman, who also pleaded guilty to impersonating a government official, conducted the fake weddings from February to July 2023
The court heard he even helped the cheated couples plan their big day and write their vows.
The scam began to unravel when Cheesman gave the couples excuses as to why he had not yet given them their official marriage documents.
The court heard he eventually admitted to the victims that he was ‘simply too ashamed to admit he had been deregistered as a celebrant’. Herald Sun reported.
He also said he had ‘forgotten to pay the celebrant registration fee’, but neither excuse was true: Cheesman had never been a wedding celebrant, the court heard.
When Australian Federal Police officers arrested Cheesman on February 19, he told them he knew what he was doing was wrong, but didn’t know it was a ‘criminal offense’.
William Cheesman (pictured) lied about having a wedding celebrant license and left a vicious trail of destruction after defrauding five newlyweds by ruining their special day
The court heard Cheesman told officers he understood the couples would not legally marry after his shift, but that he had not considered the legal and financial implications.
In a victim impact statement read to the court, a woman said she and her partner were ‘angry’ and ‘disappointed’ by what Cheesman had done to them.
“He caused emotional distress between us as a couple, our families and friends… it was extremely embarrassing,” she said.
The woman said their wedding day was “forever tainted” by what turned out to be a fake wedding ceremony.
She added that her relationship with her partner became tense because she did not know if they were married, which caused arguments between them.
The woman said their entire wedding day was a waste of money, “something that cost over $30,000 was ruined by William’s services being invalidated.”
The couple renewed their vows after finding out they were not legally married to Cheesman.
‘Not only was I betrayed by a celebrant, I was also betrayed by a friend. William’s presence in our photos is a constant reminder of what (he) did to us and it is something that can never be replaced,” the woman told the court.
William ‘Will’ Cheesman (pictured) told police he had not considered the legal and financial consequences of his actions
Cheesman, who represented himself in court, said he had apologized to his victims and paid them back.
“I feel terrible that I have been unfair to my friends,” he told the court.
He added that he no longer wants to work as a registrar.
According to the prosecutor, what Cheesman did was “a breach of trust… committed for personal gain’ and that it was planned over a number of months.
The submission added that Cheesman had multiple opportunities to withdraw from the offence, which were ‘persistent in nature’ and had a ‘degree of sophistication’.
Magistrate Malcolm Thomas took into account ‘the impact on the victims, the potential legal consequences in relation to the children if the matter had not come to light and the financial implications of their status if they were not properly married’.
Cheesman was convicted and given a six-month community corrections order.
Daily Mail Australia contacted Cheesman for comment.