A 68-year-old Florida man married his 24-year-old granddaughter.
The couple, who have requested to remain anonymous, were unaware that they were related when they exchanged vows reports the Florida Sun Post.
Thanks to a winning lottery ticket, the twice-divorced grandfather was able to move from his modest apartment to a waterfront property in Golden Beach, Florida. Figuring that his newly enhanced bank account could help land him a wife, he signed up with a dating service that specializes in finding women for older men, and quickly zeroed in on his bride-to-be.
“I just felt something strange when I saw her photos,” Grandpa recalled. “It was like a sense of deja vu, but at the time I couldn’t figure out why she seemed so familiar.”
A date was arranged, and a love connection was made. “We just hit it off right from when she walked into the restaurant,” he explained.
The granddaughter was working in Jacksonville as an exotic dancer. “I’m not proud of working there, but I did what I had to do to raise my child as a single mom,” she told reporters. Her financial situation led to signing up with the dating agency, according to the Sun Post.
The realization that they were related happened one day when they were going through a photo album and suddenly realized that his son is her father. “When I saw my father in that photo album, I just felt an overwhelming sense of despair,” said the young bride. Her husband added “I felt so bad for her, because I know how she must have been feeling.”
Despite discovering that they’re closely related, the couple is steadfast in their desire to stay married and make it work. She is philosophical about it, stating that “Every couple is different and special in their own ways. I feel our bond is so strong that even something like this is not enough to make us give up.” As for him, he just doesn’t want to get divorced again. “I’ve already had two failed marriages, and I’m determined not to have a third,” he said.
According to Florida Statute 826.04, anyone who “knowingly marries or has sexual intercourse” with a blood relative is guilty of incest, which is a third-degree felony, notes Inquisitr.com.
