LZN
27-06-2004, 21:14
Gran weds net man, 22 By ANDREW PARKER A GRAN aged 60 has dumped her hubby to wed a 22-year-old Moroccan she met on the internet. Sylvia Norton divorced husband of 38 years Eric after contacting hunky student Tarik Ouhtit in a chatroom. The mum of three — whose children are all older than Tarik — fell for him using a computer she bought Eric for his 60th birthday. But now she is furious after Tarik was refused a visa to come to Britain. He has been told he must prove it is not a marriage of convenience. British Gas worker Sylvia said at Dudley, West Midlands: “This is not a marriage of convenience, it’s a marriage of love. “Tarik’s my husband and I want to live with him in my country. “I know people might think he has other motives but I’m not daft. I know it’s the real thing.” Tarik — who has a brother in London — had previously been refused a visa twice. He said from his village home near the Moroccan capital Rabat: “They think it’s a convenience marriage because of the age gap. But I love her.” Sylvia, who has children Andrew, 35, Elizabeth, 33, and Sarah, 29, plus three grandkids, first contacted Tarik in November 2000. He used the chatroom nickname Fortune Teller. She ran up a £2,000 phone bill and flew to see him five times, marrying him in Morocco in May. She said: “When I saw him he looked like an Adonis. I flung my arms round him like a lovesick teenager. “He’s had an amazing effect — I feel younger. I used to walk with a stick, now I’ve thrown it away.” She added: “I did ask if he wasn’t looking for someone his age. But he said he wanted a real woman and that I was loving and caring. My children were frosty at first but they’ve accepted things.” Eric, now 61, is living with son Andrew. He said: “I was very hurt at first. But now I’m quite enjoying doing my own thing.” The Home Office said it would not discuss individual cases..