A Texas woman has opened up about why she called the police after stumbling across shocking information about her husband on Facebook
A Houston woman has spoken out about calling the police on her husband after making a shocking discovery online.
Tammie and Marcus Andra Shorten from Houston, Texas, married in 2012 before separating in 2019, however, the pair didn’t get divorced.
And in December, while scrolling Facebook, Tammie came to learn she may not know the man she married as well as she first thought.
Tammie told ABC13 Houston she was Marcus’ third wife and the pair never divorced because Marcus reportedly didn’t want to be considered a ‘failure’.
“He says, ‘I didn’t want a divorce. I’m getting me some help. I don’t want to get a divorce. I don’t want my family to think I’m a failure’,” she claimed.
The pair stayed in touch and reportedly kept discussing the option of divorce, but Tammie claims Marcus maintained he didn’t want one.
However, in December, she stumbled across a wedding registry for Marcus online, alongside photographs of his alleged wedding on Facebook.
Marcus Andra Shorten has been charged with bigamy (ABC13 Houston)
Images of Marcus at what appeared to be his own wedding with a wife who was not Tammie were shared to Facebook by a member of his family.
Tammie says she contacted Marcus and said: “Before you let the world know what you’re doing, make sure your business is right.”
The registry confirmed Marcus got married on 27 January earlier this year – the marriage license viewed by ABC13 Houston.
Upon making the discovery, Tammie contacted police and reported her husband for bigamy.
She said: “I knew it was wrong. You’ve not only destroyed my life, but now you have destroyed somebody else’s life and all the parties that’s involved in it.
“You can’t go around lying and misleading individuals at your self satisfaction.”
A wedding certificate naming Marcus (ABC13 Houston)
According to court records, Marcus has been married at least four times.
The outlet found divorce decrees for two of the marriages, but Houston Police believes Marcus is currently married to two women.
Tammie added it’s ‘not like [Marcus didn’t] know what a divorce is because [he’d] been married several times before’.
Marcus now faces the rare charge of bigamy. If convicted, Texas laws state he could face between two and 10 years in prison and a fine of $10,000 according to Legal Match.
Marcus reportedly told ABC13 Houston he is ‘not married to anyone’ and denies the charge.