Woman's mock arrest ends with marriage proposal

A Saint John man is hoping an unusual wedding proposal, which involved a fake arrest of his fiance, could lead to dream wedding next year in St. Andrews.

Ben Vienneau and his brother-in-law, who is a police officer, arranged to stage what they called, "a 10-29 a marriage proposal in progress."

A video posted on YouTube shows the police car pulling over Marcia Belyea's truck and an officer asks for her licence and registration.

The officer then explains she owed more than $2,000 in fines and faced 30 days in jail.

In tears, she was sitting in the back of a police cruiser when Vienneau appeared and the officer offered an alternative arrangement to spending the next month in jail.

"Ben and I have come to an agreement where weve agreed to waive the fine and let you go if you take his hand in marriage," the officer said.

A shocked Belyea agreed and she happily left the backseat of the police cruiser.

After the proposal, Vienneau said he was worried that his plan was going off script. The original plan was to propose to her in her vehicle and not while she was sitting in the back of a police cruiser.

"I didn't expect it to happen that way. I was just as surprised as she was. He came over to me and said. Oh, no. I think I took it too far,'" he said.

The engaged couple is now hoping the popularity of their video will mean more votes in a private radio contest where the first prize is a wedding next July in St Andrews worth more than $20,000.

But, even if they don't win, Vienneau and Belyea say they will still get married that month.