- Tracey, 48, met Atef Khadhraoui, 28, on a social networking website
- After visiting him twice he requested large amounts of money from her
- Four-year engagement ended when Atef's new wife messaged Tracey
- The mum-of-two has met a new Tunisian man who 'treats her like royalty'
Tracey Jackson was left heartbroken after she discovered that her Tunisian fiancé had married another woman while they were still engaged
A mother-of-two discovered that her Tunisian fiancé had wed another woman when he posted his marriage certificate on Facebook.
Tracey Jackson met Atef Khadhraoui, 20 years her junior, on a social networking website. Over the next four years the 48-year-old lavished the 28-year-old with gifts and cash.
However, Tracey was left heartbroken when she discovered that he chose to repay her by marrying another woman – and not telling her.
Tracey from Rhyl, Wales, believes he must have used some of her money to fund the secret nuptials with his new wife, although he denies this claim.
She says that funding his lifestyle has left her struggling to manage financially.
'I'm convinced he must have spent at least some of my money marrying the other woman.
He broke my heart and my bank balance. I'm left in crippling debt from loans.'
Tracey first met Atef after messaging him on the dating website, Tagged, in 2009. The couple then began speaking on Skype every night.
'He begged me to go out and see him,' Tracey said. 'But because of a hernia in my bowel, I can't work and receive disability allowance.
'I told him it would take a while for me to save and started putting away £70 from each cheque.
Tracey says she had her doubts behind Atef's motives for speaking to her but he was so charming she was easily won round.
'At first part of me did wonder why a young guy like him was interested in me. He just said you can't choose who you fall in love with.'
Despite his romantic declarations, Tracey said she was terrified of meeting him in person.
'I've had a colostomy bag since I was 19 and was worried he'd see me as some old biddy,' she explained.
During the four years that they were together Tracey gave Atef Khadhraoui £7000. Pictured: Tracey holds some of the receipts from the bank transfers she made to Atef
Tracey's fiancé (pictured) was 20 years her junior but repeatedly told her he loved her
Despite being unable to work Tracey saved up her disability allowance to visit her toyboy in Tunisia. Pictured: Tracey with Atef (right) and his mum (left) on a visit to Tunisia
'After six months of scrimping I finally had enough money. The first time I went out there he treated me like a princess.
He was so tanned and muscular. I knew I'd fallen for him. I told him I couldn't give him children and that he should find a girl his own age but he told me not to talk like that.
'Over the next week, we barely left the bedroom. I really thought I'd hit the jackpot.'
After returning to Wales Tracey says she missed him so much she took out a £400 high interest loan so she could fly out again two months later.
By doing so it meant that Tracey could not afford Christmas presents for friends and family and had to buy gifts from discount stores for her daughters, Lyndsey, 26, and Victoria, 24.
Despite having to make huge sacrifices once Tracey arrived in Tunisia she said it appeared that the effort had been worth it when she was met with a big surprise.
Tracey says that at the beginning of their relationship they hardly left the bedroom but she soon noticed that her partner was reluctant to have sex with her
On her second visit to Tunisia, Atef surprised Tracey by proposing to her at his home at a party
'On my second day out there he arranged a huge surprise party where he proposed. I thought it was soon, but I was swept up in the moment.'
'I did have doubts when I saw Atef slow-dancing with another woman, but he assured me she was just a friend.'
Just before leaving her fiancé Tracey was met with more monetary demands that she felt she couldn't refuse.
'Then the day before I left, he told me he had to pay a £300 fine or he would be enrolled in the army.
'He said it would mean we couldn't speak or see each other any more. I was devastated and agreed to split the amount with his parents.'
After that, the mother-of-two said her toyboy needed to pay an extra £25 a week to stop him being forced into the military.
At the proposal party Tracey says that she noticed Atef slow dancing with another woman but in her state of happiness chose to ignore it
Tracey adapted to Atef's culture whole heartedly, devoting her life to her husband-to-be
Tracey would go without food in order to afford her tickets to Tunisia and soon enough Atef got wind of her devotion to him and began to ask Tracey for money
'I couldn't stand the thought of not speaking to him, so pretty soon I was giving him £70 a fortnight out of my benefits,' she explained.
'He thought I was rich, but I kept telling him it meant I had to go without. I had to bulk buy discount food and often skip meals.
But at the end of the day he was going to be my husband, so what was mine was his.
'I'd send him out gifts too. I bought him trainers, countless mobile phones and aftershave.'
It was during a visit to Tunisia in October 2013, after dating for almost four years, that Tracey started to get suspicious.
They always stayed at the family home, but this time Atef said they needed to stay in an apartment to give his parents a break.
After paying £600 for the week, Tracey said she barely saw her fiancé.
'He stopped wanting to have sex with me and he'd leave me in the flat while he went out.
'It was like he didn't want to be near me, always snapping and being cruel. He'd tell me he had to run errands, then not return for hours. I didn't know the language so I was left stranded indoors.'
Despite the warning signs Tracey says she refused to believe that there was anything wrong and continued to pursue the relationship.
Atef told Tracey he had to pay a £300 fine to prevent him being enrolled in the army she agreed to split the bill with his parents and continued to fund him while she was back in Wales
Tracey began to notice Atef's behaviour change towards her and soon after received a message from the woman he had danced with at the engagement party claiming she was with Atef
'I told myself we were going through a rough patch. When the holiday was over and I was back home we still chatted every day. We spoke about our future, our wedding, everything felt back on track.'
But just a few weeks later her world came crumbling down when she received a message from a woman on Facebook.
'I logged on and saw that I'd received a private message from a woman called Mariem.
'It said she was with Atef and that he'd been using me for money. Clicking on her profile picture, I felt sick to my stomach. Mariem was the woman who had been slow-dancing with Atef at my engagement party.
'I felt like I was trapped in a nightmare. When I confronted him he sounded so calm and assured me that Mariem was just a silly girl with a crush.'
Worse betrayal was yet to come though when Tracey logged on to Facebook a month later, on 14 January this year.
'I hadn't heard from Atef in a while so went on his profile and my jaw dropped in horror. He'd uploaded a new picture - his marriage certificate to Mariem.
'I felt like I'd been thwacked with a baseball bat. My fiancé had married another woman and I'd been utterly clueless.
Tracey was horrified to discover that Atef had wed the woman in question after he uploaded an image of their marriage certificate (pictured right) to Facebook
'I called Atef and asked how he could do this to me and whether he'd used my money to afford his big day. All he did was laugh. It was heartbreaking and humiliating. He never apologised, never gave me any explanation.'
Tracey says that she now sees how she was used by her toyboy but has not let it deter her from finding love elsewhere.
'I can't believe I wasted four years of my life with that rat. Sometimes I doubt whether he ever really loved me. Maybe all he ever saw me as was a walking, human cash machine.
'I've added it up and I gave Atef more than £7,000. But I'm determined not to mope. I've met a new Tunisian man who treats me like royalty and never asks for money.
'The complete opposite of Atef Khadharoui. I want to name and shame him, and let the women of the UK know what he's capable of.'
When approached by the media, Atef claims that he funded his wedding himself and that he does not wish to hear from his former fiancée.
'Please tell Tracey to forget me. I am married now with my love.
'I don't need Tracey. I paid for my wedding with my money.'
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