In early May, Tony Garnett and his partner Lorna took in a Sofiia Karkadym, who fled the city of Lviv. The family took in the Ukrainian refugee to help escape the Russian invasion, and at the time, Tony reportedly said he wanted to do the right thing and that she was the first person to get in touch on a Facebook page where he offered to house a refugee.

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On May 4th, Sofiia, who works as an IT Manager, flew into Manchester, having waited for weeks in Berlin for her UK visa to be approved.

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Ten days after her arrival, Tony, 29, and Lorna, 28, sadly began to see their happy marriage gradually torn apart. Notably, Tony and Sofiia instantly developed a connection and while his three-year-old daughters equally took a liking to her, his partner of ten years did not. Tony allegedly spoke in Slovakian and would talk with his future lover while she spoke Ukrainian, as the two languages were intelligible.

As the days passed, Sofiia would join Tony at the gym, and they would talk in his car. While at home, they grew physically closer.

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The language barrier left Lorna not understanding what the pair was talking about and became jealous and resentful towards Sofiia. Tony added: “At home, I realized we were finding excuses to touch and brush against each other. It was very flirtatious but nothing more than that happened at that stage. Although it was fairly innocent it was causing arguments. I can understand that. When I got in at night, Sofiia would be the one who had made a meal for me to try.” 

“The atmosphere was getting really bad and Sofiia told me she didn’t know whether she could continue to live with us under these circumstances. Lorna was never that enthusiastic about having a refugee in our home because it meant the girls had to move into one room.”

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Tony of Bradford, West Yorkshire, has attested he has fallen in love with the 22-Year-Old and wants to spend the rest of his life with her.

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Acknowledging the pain it will cause Lorna; Tony said he had discovered a connection with Sofiia like he never had before, adding that they know this is right. However, things came to a head after an explosive fight between the women left Sofiia in tears. Tony stated that something inside him clicked, and he told Lorna, “if she’s going, I’m going.” The pair then packed their bags and moved in with Tony’s mum and dad, although they are looking at properties to move into. 

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On the other hand, Tony has said he feels bad and that Lorna should not be blamed for his actions. “We didn’t mean to hurt anyone,” he insisted.

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