A distraught woman who came home to an empty house and credit cards empty realized her American husband had left her the day after his Australian spouse visa was approved.
Isabelle Glastonbury, now 31, met Michael* in Dallas in 2015 and quickly fell in love with the charismatic and charming Texan.
After a whirlwind engagement a year later, the couple moved from the United States to Australia together in 2018.
The couple wed in a fairytale wedding at the Boathouse in Palm Beach, the bill of more than $50,000 paid generously by her parents.
But her newlywed happiness turned to heartbreak after a night of dinner and drinks to celebrate Michael’s visa approval in January 2021, 2 years and 4 months after applying, the fee also funded by her father and mother.
“I came home and literally 90 per cent of his stuff was gone,” Isabelle told Daily Mail Australia.
Isabelle (pictured) married Michael* in an intimate wedding in Palm Beach in 2018
Isabelle returned home in 2021 to an empty apartment after her husband’s marriage visa was approved
“I had a sinking feeling,” she recalls.
“I tried to log into our immigration accounts. I lost access to everything. My credit cards were maxed out and I was blocked on his phone. None of my calls or messages went through.”
For over a month, Isabelle was in the dark about why Michael, now 29, had suddenly disappeared without any explanation.
“He ghosted everyone — all of our mutual friends, the witness to our wedding, and his own family. No one knew where he was.”
But in retrospect, the months leading up to the discovery that her husband had disappeared were worrying, she said.
“He had become distant and started disappearing at night. I felt like I was married to a complete stranger.”
The former couple tied the knot in a fairytale wedding at The Boathouse in Palm Beach
Isabella’s parents paid more than $50,000 for her marriage to Michael, then he disappeared after his Australian visa was granted
Isabelle claimed that in the days leading up to ghosting her, Michael had said he wanted them to move to Queensland, buy a house and start a family.
“I don’t know what his plan was, it was all wrong,” she says.
“I think we got married, he got over it and was too crazy to say something to my face, but he just wanted to stay in Australia.”
According to Isabelle, the Department of Immigration and Border Protection did little to reject Michael’s visa after he disappeared, a $10,000 expense paid by her parents when the couple first moved to Sydney.
“So many people reported him to immigration and nothing happened,” she said.
“I have such a problem with the visa situation, people can literally leave and have no repercussions or be forced to give any accountability.”
It’s been over a year since the former couple officially divorced and Isabelle hasn’t seen or spoken to Michael since their brief meeting in February 2021, where he vaguely explained to her that he was supposed to be ‘single’.
Three months later, Isabelle and her high school sweetheart Max welcomed baby Mason
“Recently my friend told me that Michael got married again – almost a year after the day we officially divorced.”
He was my best friend, my ride or die. He fooled everyone, including me.’
Isabelle has also moved on and rekindled her relationship with her high school sweetheart and best friend Max, with the couple welcoming baby Mason three months ago.
“I’m in a good place, I’ve been wanting to share my story for a while now because you never think it’s going to happen to you until it does,” she said.
And her advice for others?
“Don’t be blind because I’m sure I could have seen the signs before this happened and I just ignored it, you never really know who you’re sleeping with.”
