If you think your family has drama, a 55-year-old man in India just raised the bar by marrying his teenage son’s fiancée and taking the family’s jewelry and savings as a parting gift. Beat that.

Shakeel, a father of six and grandfather of three from Rampur, Uttar Pradesh, had spent months planning his 17-year-old son’s wedding. He arranged the match himself. Insisted on it, actually. His wife objected. His son objected. Shakeel did it anyway—until he didn’t. Instead, he disappeared to Delhi and called home with an update: he married the bride himself.

“The woman who was supposed to be my daughter-in-law has now become my husband’s wife,” said Shakeel’s wife, Shabbana, who somehow managed to say this out loud to a reporter without combusting.

Man Eloped With His Son’s Fiancée and Stole the Family Jewels on the Way Out

According to her, the red flags were all there. Shakeel had been making frequent visits to the bride-to-be, allegedly for wedding prep. When questioned, he became aggressive. Eventually, Shabbana and her son Aman uncovered a string of messages between the two. Aman backed out of the engagement. Days later, Shakeel left for “work.” Then came the call.

And while announcing he’d married his son’s almost-wife was bold enough, he also reportedly made off with more than 200,000 rupees (around $2,400) in family savings and all the gold jewelry in the house. No police report has been filed yet, which means there’s nothing stopping Shakeel from starting his new life, minus the respect of basically everyone he’s ever known.

Police say their hands are tied without a complaint. Legally, that’s true. Morally, it feels like someone should at least confiscate his phone and burn it.

India, a country rich in spiritual tradition, often leans on fate, karma, and rebirth to explain away even the worst behavior. Somewhere out there, someone is probably chalking this up to “past-life soul ties.” But even in a culture that has space for cosmic destiny, this still reads like pure betrayal.

No word on whether the new couple is enjoying their honeymoon, but the rest of the family is left with no cash, no gold, and a family tree that now has one long, deeply uncomfortable branch.

If this sounds like a one-off…it’s not. A similar story made headlines just months ago—except in that one, it was the groom who ran off with the bride’s mom. Love wins, apparently. Just not for the people you expect.