A man who lied about having a wedding celebrant’s license has left a cruel trail of destruction after tricking couples, some of whom were close friends, into paying him $1,000 and ruining their special day with “emotional distress.” and “shame.”
William ‘Will’ Cheesman, 31, pleaded guilty in the Melbourne Magistrates Court on Monday to charges including the solemnization of a marriage by an unauthorized person.
Court heard he cheated and led fake weddings for five couples who paid between $700 and $1,000 for him to marry them, not knowing that he had no legal right to do so.
Cheesman, who also pleaded guilty to impersonating a public official, performed 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 couples excuses as to why he had not yet given them their official marriage documents.
The court heard he eventually admitted to victims that he had “simply been too ashamed to admit he had been deregistered as a celebrant”, the court heard. Herald of the sun reported.
He also said he had “forgotten to pay his celebrant registration fee”, but neither of those excuses were 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 had done was wrong, but I didn’t know it was a “criminal offense.”
William Cheesman (pictured) lied about having a wedding celebrant’s license and left a cruel trail of destruction after he scammed five newlywed couples by ruining their special day.
William Cheesman tricked five couples into paying between $700 and $1,000 for him to marry, even though he had no legal right to do so (file image)
The court heard Cheesman told officers he understood couples would not legally marry for his service, but 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 did to them.
“He caused emotional distress between us as a couple, our families and friends… it was extremely embarrassing,” she said.
The woman said her wedding day was “forever tainted” by what turned out to be a fake marriage ceremony.
She added that her relationship with her partner became strained as a result of not knowing whether they were married, which led to fights between them.
The woman said her entire wedding day was a waste of money, “something that cost over $30,000 was ruined because William’s services were invalid.”
The couple redid their vows after discovering that Cheesman had not legally married them.
“Not only was I betrayed by a celebrant, I was betrayed by a friend. William’s presence in our photos is a constant reminder of what he did to us and 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 implications of his actions.
Cheesman, representing himself in court, said he had apologized and repaid his victims.
“I feel terrible for having been dishonest with my friends,” he told the court.
He added that he no longer wishes to work as a wedding celebrant.
The prosecution’s filing stated that what Cheesman did was ‘a breach of trust… committed for personal gain” and that was planned for several months.
The filing added that Cheesman had multiple opportunities to retreat from the crime, which were “persistent in nature” and had a “degree of sophistication.”
Magistrate Malcolm Thomas took into account “the impact on the victims, the possible legal consequences in relation to the children if the matter had not come to light and the financial consequences of their condition of not being properly married”.
Cheesman was found guilty and given a six-month community corrections order.
Daily Mail Australia has contacted Cheesman for comment.
