UPON discovering the startling reality that she had been married for a year to a guy she had never met, Evelyn Ruelan’s supposedly joyful wedding preparations became a nightmare.
Bacolod City resident Evelyn recently sought a Certificate of No Marriage (CENOMAR) in anticipation of her upcoming wedding.
However, she was shocked to learn that she had married an Indian national in Valenzuela City a year prior, as evidenced by the Certificate of Marriage she obtained.
“Today marks the first wedding anniversary that I was unaware of. Evelyn said curiously, “I would not have known I was married if I hadn’t received the documents.”
The correctness of the information on the certificate—including her complete name and even the names of her parents—made the discovery even more surprising.
Evelyn, however, claims that the document’s signature was not hers, which confirms her assumption that someone else stole her name fraudulently.
To further complicate matters, Evelyn disclosed that she has never visited Valenzuela City, the purported location of the marriage.
She wondered how local civil register officers could let this happen without checking the documents’ legitimacy.
To clear her name, Evelyn is now demanding a comprehensive probe into the situation. In addition to upsetting her and her fiancé’s wedding plans, the incident has sparked serious concerns regarding identity theft and procedural errors.
“It’s not only about me. How could such a serious incident occur with such ease?” Evelyn said.
Evelyn’s request for an investigation has not yet received a response from the relevant agencies or local authorities.